


Call me a Sinner

by Queen_B



Series: Call Me [1]
Category: Magic Kaito, 名探偵コナン | Detective Conan | Case Closed
Genre: Courting Rituals, Cute Shinichi, Flirting, Kaitou Kid Heist (Meitantei Conan/Magic Kaito), Making Out, Minor Hakuba Saguru/Nakamori Aoko, Mischievous Kaito, Multi, Not Beta Read, Oblivious Kudou Shinichi | Edogawa Conan, Possessive Kuroba Kaito | Kaitou Kid, Post-Conan Kudou Shinichi, Pranks
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-31
Updated: 2020-09-24
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:34:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 20,690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26217223
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Queen_B/pseuds/Queen_B
Summary: Kaito knew he'd have to reveal his identity sooner or later if he wanted to have an actual future with his Tantei-kun. Not that he could simply do that with a blond nuisance on his case. No, he needed a plan.Eventual KaishinHigher Rating because of Chapter 3
Relationships: Kudou Shinichi | Edogawa Conan/Kuroba Kaito | Kaitou Kid
Series: Call Me [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1904017
Comments: 18
Kudos: 281





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Eventual Kaishin, cross-posted on FF
> 
> This is a side project, updates will come whenever I have the time. This is not beta'ed, you have been warned. Rating may change in later chapters.

* * *

  


Thinking back, Kaito mused, he was a fool to not have thought about it earlier.

  


Of course he's known that his favorite little critic wasn't _really_ a grade schooler. Not from the beginning, he could admit. Call him crazy, but being shrunk by an experimental drug was less creepy than a six-year-old being so freakishly mature and smart.

It was better for his ego, too.

  


Finding out that Edogawa Conan was a shrunken Kudo Shinichi was something he was proud of, as intriguing as it was.

However, the knowledge was stored in the back of his mind, put on a shelf. Their encounters weren't that frequent, despite each being challenging and joyous, interesting in so many aspects.

  


When the news spread that a gigantic illegal organization has been taken out by the FBI and a newly returned Kudo Shinichi, Kaito was both happy and sad.

  


Sure, it was good his Tantei-kun had his old body back, and wouldn't have to keep hiding from the evil organization.

But Kaito had also grown fond of the tiny genius, and as rare as their encounters were, the knowledge he wouldn't be waiting on the rooftops anymore was dragging him down.

  


He's thought about sending out a personal invite to his next heist, but he figured Shinichi would need a while to get used to being back to his old self. He was pretty sure there was a lot to take care of after three years of being absent.

  


Despite the common opinion, Kaito _was_ considerate. So he ignored his burning curiosity and refrained from spying on his favorite tantei during the first few months.

And, he had to admit, it kind of slipped his mind for a while, with his own busy life.

  


But then, after a particularly fun heist – his task force was getting really good, courtesy of Hakuba probably – he was about to leap off the ledge of the roof, when there was movement from the shadows.

  


Pokerface firmly in place, KID turned around, greeting his company with his typical smirk and a tilt of his head.

His thoughts ran wild, he was pretty sure he had all of the task force, including Nakamori-keibu and Hakuba, stuck in his honey trap.

  


His Pokerface has never been tested this much before, he mused afterwards, than at the moment Kudo Shinichi emerged from the shadows in all his glory.

  


Photos could only show so much. There was a faint similarity between Kaito and Shinichi, sure, but there were a lot more differences the longer you looked.

  


For one, the detective was a little shorter than him, by an inch or two, his features in general appeared softer and more delicate. His neat hair, safe for the cute little cowlick and rogue tuft in the back, was staying smooth even in the nightly breeze, opposite to Kaito's bird's nest.

And that were only the things the thief noticed on a first cursory glance.

  


However, there was one thing standing out, and it was challenging his calm exterior.

  


Usually hidden behind the glasses, now, as the element of disguise wasn't needed anymore, the view was clear. Those eyes. Those freaking intelligent eyes.

  


Like the most beautiful sapphire, no, even more brilliant, they shone under the moonlight. Kaito imagined he could even faintly see the stars reflected in them. It was breathtaking.

  


The confident smirk made him even more handsome, and the words of greeting coming from those pink lips made Kaito's own grin widen.

  


“Good evening, KID.”

  


“I see you're back to your real self, Tantei-kun.”

  


“Mh. I figured I'd let you know personally.” Those tantalizing eyes flickered to the black diamond ring the thief was playing with. “I take it you haven't found what _you_ were looking for yet.”

  


“Ah, you know how it is. If it was too easy it would be boring.” The gloved hand flicked, and the ring vanished from sight.

“Did you like my show?”

  


There was that smirk again. “Using the railings was clever. If your strings hadn't left marks I wouldn't have been able to figure it out.” He shook his head with a slight chuckle, the sapphire eyes glinting with amusement.

“Though I don't know how you managed to rig the taskforce's clothes like that.”

  


KID allowed himself a broad real grin. One, because he managed to slip something past his favorite detective's radar, and second, because it had been freakishly hilarious.

  


During his heist, he managed to redress the whole taskforce into ridiculous bee costumes, this time without using his smoke bombs, for a change. Instead, it had been a complicated mechanism that had taken him ages to plan, and was too unpredictable. He probably wouldn't use that technique again.

His dear Nakamori-keibu even got a nice little crown to go with it. And in their chase through the suddenly flower covered hallways, they set off the fast hardening honey trap.

It would definitely take a while to get out of there. And even longer to get clean.

  


“You figured out the flower trick then?”

  


“Of course. Though I do wonder where you keep getting your endless supply from.”

  


KID engulfed himself in a puff of white smoke, vanishing from the ledge and reappearing in front of Shinichi in a gentlemanly bow, offering a pink rose.

“That's something you shouldn't concern yourself with.” He winked. “Rest assured that I'll always have some up my sleeve.”

  


For a moment, the detective was blinking at the gesture, but decided it was KID's typical attitude he's seen during heists, and, humoring him, took the rose.

  


He wasn't prepared for KID to grab his hand, the one visible indigo eye glittering with mirth, and pressing his lips to the back of it. 

  


Fighting the blush that crept onto his cheeks, Shinichi forced himself to relax. KID was someone that fed off reaction, if his antics with the taskforce were anything to go by. The detective wouldn't give him the satisfaction.

  


“Welcome back, Tantei-kun.”

  


The words murmured against his fingers were sending shivers up his whole arm, but before he could say anything, there was another puff of smoke and KID was gone.

  


All that was left was the pink rose and the black diamond ring that now sat on Shinichi's finger.

  


Yeah, Kaito really should've thought about it earlier. His favorite critic, the brilliant mind with the gorgeous eyes. Him being back to his now twenty-year-old body was Kaito's chance.

He just needed to find out if his Tantei-kun was interested too.

  


**xxx**

  


Kaito wouldn't be himself if he'd give up after a failed attempt. Or ten.

  


Alright, he should have expected that Shinichi wouldn't suddenly develop the same fanatic interest in his heists and catching him as Hakuba or Nakamori-keibu.

With him being in the homicide division, he had no business with the KID cases. Technically.

  


Still, Kaito would've thought he'd at least visit one or two. But no, the tantei was absent during the each of the admittedly more frequent heists.

  


His not-quite stalking had given him a little more information about his newest interest. He needed to be prepared, after all.

If he set his mind on something, he wouldn't stop at anything until he succeeded.

  


The blanks he came up with, he thought with a minimal amount of regret, could've been filled if he'd begun his information gathering earlier. So much for being considerate.

  


Kudo Shinichi was living in his absent parents' mansion. _Living_ being a very loose term in this case.

He visited special classes in the mornings, so he could get his diploma. After that, he took university courses online, specializing on forensic medicine and criminal law.

It was funny, Kaito mused, that he didn't choose the direct police niche like Aoko had, but at the same time it made sense.

He already was a detective, more brilliant than the whole homicide division, why waste time and study what you already knew?

  


The rest of the afternoon and most of the night was spent at the precinct, where he worked on cases, which never seemed to cease. And that didn't even count all the bodies that happened to appear wherever his Tantei-kun went.

It would seem he was cursed, and the rumor that a shinigami was following him around was making sense.

  


Some evenings, Shinichi would let himself be chased out by the police, the whole division overly protective of him and his health.

  


There was also his neighbor, an explosion-prone professor, and a girl that seemed too mature to be normal, giving Kaito the impression that she too had been shrunk.

Either way, once a week Shinichi would visit them in the morning, but no matter what devices he used, Kaito couldn't figure out what was going on inside, only white noise.

One would think they didn't _want_ themselves to be spied on.

  


Aside from his not-so-healthy lifestyle – coffee didn't count as meal, no matter what Shinichi has obviously been thinking – there were no weird surprises so far. Not that Kaito had expected any.

  


The outings with Mori-san, as rare as they were, appeared entirely friendly from an outsider's point of view. His eavesdropping gave him the idea that she had adapted the big sister role, despite her friend being back to his older body.

Which, on a side note, appeared to have been stuck on seventeen, instead of his original age of twenty now.

Probably had to do with whatever poison had shrunk him. Stored for later investigation. Back to the topic.

  


There was no romantic interaction, which was _good_ , he decided. Going against a childhood friend turned crush would be fighting a losing battle. And Kaito knew first hand how bad it could turn out with these sort of crushes.

He's been lucky that Aoko had overcome hers quickly when he had confessed he was more interested in the, er, male population.

  


Perhaps his Tantei-kun and Nee-san had had a similar conversation? No, Kaito, don't jump to conclusions.

  


The thief had underestimated the detective the first time he's been tailing him, almost getting caught, because he had observed him too intently. It was like Shinichi had an antenna for being watched.

It kinda made the not-stalking even more fun. Almost like at a heist, he mused. The giddiness, the adrenaline.

Geeze, stay focused.

  


So far, Shinichi's social life consisted only of his weekly visits to his neighbor and his even rarer meetings with his childhood friend.

The school course and work didn't quite count, because the detective wasn't socializing in a way that mattered.

  


_That_ couldn't be healthy either. So, Kaito made his mental list, as soon as he was actually a part of his tantei's life he'd make sure he was eating right and get him to socialize more.

Maybe introduce him to Aoko, though that would have to wait until they trusted each other enough.

  


Kaito let his pen travel through his fingers, tapping it on the paper he was using to sketch out his next show. His real show, as the famous magician Kuroba Kaito, for an elementary school.

There wasn't much elaborate planning needed, if he was honest, he could improvise the whole thing. Children were always easy too express. Except for his Tantei-kun.

  


With those all-seeing, gorgeous eyes, even more mesmerizing on the handsome grown-up face, that looked downright adorable when a light dusting of a blush covered his probably very soft cheeks... Argh.

  


Rubbing both hands over his face in frustration, Kaito sighed.

  


The detective's sharp mind has always been attractive, but he himself... the thief didn't even know how to describe him. He probably shouldn't even start to.

  


If he'd start thinking about how soft the skin of the fingers beneath his lips had felt, he'd begin fantasizing that those rosy cheeks were equally smooth.

He could imagine comparing, also using his lips, of course. And _of course_ he'd have to check if the rest of him was as satin-like, for research reasons, obviously.

  


The pulse would quicken, he'd feel it thrumming beneath his lips as they'd wander over the expanse of the undoubtedly heated neck... Damn.

  


There was no way he'd get anything done like that. And he didn't even know if the object of his desire was into men. Or anything, for that matter. He'd need to clarify this, as soon as possible. For the sake of his own sanity.

  


**xxx**

  


No one could blame him for being paranoid. Not with what he's been through the past three years.

Given the circumstances, he was rather calm, compared to how he could be acting instead.

  


So if he kept looking over his shoulder repeatedly, always made sure to have his back against a wall, and could only sleep with triply looked doors and windows, it should be understandable.

  


It wasn't unjustified either, he thought. Even with the main group of the Black Organization taken down, there were still a few branches and members roaming around, according to Haibara.

It was possible they'd scatter with the main organization gone, but of course there was no guarantee.

  


Even if there were remaining members, it was unlikely they'd go after him. Still.

  


Being back in his own body was giving him a sense of security, even though he had some drawbacks. Like that his body was still seventeen, stuck when he had shrunk. That itself wasn't that big a problem, he figured. He'd grow.

  


The poison and antidote were warring inside of him, which meant he tired more easily. That clashed horribly with his busy schedule. He was set on getting his diploma, taking extra classes to do so. And to not lose any more time, he added online university courses, which was only possible _without_ the diploma because he aced the entry tests.

  


Really, without a diploma, the world was set on making life difficult. Hence the extra work to get it done.

  


Then there was his work with the police, which he could never drop. Now that he was back, and Sleeping Kogoro was no more, they relied on him even more often. And Shinichi just couldn't refuse to help bring justice.

Not to mention the ridiculous amount of bodies showing up wherever he went. It wasn't like he could just turn a blind eye to that.

  


Haibara always scolded him to eat, sleep and relax more, but it just wasn't as easy as she made it out to be. Not when you were Kudo Shinichi.

  


It wasn't like he could just sit back and relax with a book when he knew there were murderers running around.

  


Ran had told him, repeatedly, that he wouldn't catch them all single-handedly, especially when he was completely overworking himself, but he couldn't just turn _that_ off either.

He could admit that their coffee meetings were helping him to free his mind a bit. Not enough to actually completely relax, but... it felt good none the less.

  


The way his confession had turned out, he should be lucky.

At first, Ran had been – understandably – mad, but after he had explained the dangers of the BO, she had calmed a bit. It helped she had, with a detective as her father, witnessed so much cruelty.

  


The one thing she couldn't shake off though was the weird protective big sister mode. In a way it was comforting, if he was honest.

  


Now if only Sonoko would stop antagonizing him for not getting together with Ran... but that was another story entirely.

  


Getting back on track, Haibara's warning that he should try to take it easier, was also founded because, according to her, his immune system was totally wrecked with all the shrinking and de-shrinking he's done since becoming Conan.

It was a small price to pay, given that he should've died, that didn't make it less a pain to deal with.

  


Since being alone in his parents' house was only making him more anxious instead of relaxed, his idea of “taking it easy” was taking shape of attending one of KID's heists.

  


He'd admit, it was actually fun. Nobody died at heists, at least.

The notice was challenging, as he'd hoped, and the show itself was spectacular. While theft was illegal, Shinichi didn't see reason to actually arrest KID, since he always gave his loot back.

And honestly, even if Shinichi _could_ catch him, he owed the thief too much to turn him in.

  


As it was, he just enjoyed the chase. There was a tinge of nervousness as he waited on the rooftop, since KID, while knowing about this real self, hasn't actually seen him since his return.

  


Even if there was nothing to be nervous about, of course. It was just his paranoia kicking in again.

  


Seeing him, face to face this time, was an experience. A good one, he decided.

  


Aside from putting up his typical flirty self, reserved for adults, he wasn't treated any different by the thief. It was a great night.

  


He hasn't quite managed to go to the heist after that one, with a big case on his hands, but an envelope with his name on his kitchen counter, containing a personal invite notice, he couldn't ignore.

Partly because he definitely needed to clarify that he didn't appreciate people sneaking into his locked up house.

  


**xxx**

  


The target hasn't been all that hard to find out.

  


_La Lueur de la Nuit_ was a set of earrings. The background was that Princess Céline of the Pyrenees Castle had declined every suitor, every engagement gift, was said to be as cold as ice.

She had announced that she'd marry the man who would bring her the moon.

The legend says, that one night on a full moon a thief had sneaked up on her balcony, past a lot of guards and the king himself, and presented her the earrings. When the two tanzanites touched, they shone as bright as the full moon above.

Since it had been her own rule, the princess married the thief.

  


This story alone was enough of a giveaway for KID's interest. As Shinichi had already deduced a while ago, he was looking for a special jewel, that was connected to the moon somehow.

  


With knowing the target, the location was easy too. A stupidly rich heir had purchased the earrings a while ago for his collection, and was planning to show off said collection to his equally rich friends.

For the occasion, he rented a castle-themed hotel and spent a large sum of money to have it decorated even more medieval-like to match the theme.

  


Shinichi had come with the intention to only watch from the sidelines this time, just wanted to know why he's been sent a personal invite, but when Hakuba came to ask him about his opinion on one of his traps he couldn't resist taking a look.

  


He considered telling the blond to keep an eye on the decorative armors lined up around the room. In the end, he decided against it. He had a vague idea what KID intended to do with the contraception and actually _wanted_ to watch it play out.

  


One could call him an accomplice, Shinichi mused, especially when he figured out which of the guests was the disguised thief and decided not to tell the task force.

  


KID must've noticed his stare, because the masked face actually winked at him before vanishing in the crowd of well-dressed people.

  


Shinichi allowed himself a small amused smirk at the behavior. There was still some time until the scheduled heist, giving the detective an opportunity to analyze the traps Hakuba had set up.

A few of them were not up to genius standard, though Shinichi suspected that was part of the plan.

  


Hakuba intended to confuse KID with numerous minor traps, to catch him off guard with more elaborate ones. The blond's smirk when Shinichi pointed that out was telling, but the half-Brit wasn't too keen on sharing his bigger traps.

Understandable, Shinichi thought, since he knew for a fact that he and KID looked similar enough to pose as him without a mask.

  


He was probably suspected to _be_ KID at the moment, though Hakuba didn't make any comments on it. He had his own way of making sure, which was why Shinichi found himself roped into a seemingly innocent conversation about the lesser known Holmes' stories, those only real fans would know about.

  


It had put Hakuba at ease, at least, his tone more earnest when he was sure it was indeed his fellow detective he was talking to.

Shinichi waved off his apology.

  


“So you already have a suspect?” He asked conversationally as they waited for the clock to hit 11:45.

  


The taller detective nodded, eyes skimming the crowd from their place by the showcase that displayed the target.

Directly next to it were a few guys from the taskforce, Nakamori a few steps behind, back to the wall as he talked to the owner of the hotel.

  


“A former classmate of mine. I'm fairly sure it's him. What I don't have is proof.”

  


Shinichi played with the red silken rope that divided them from the “normal” crowd.

  


“I see.” There was his burning curiosity, but he found himself unwilling to inquire.

  


Simply hearing it would take the fun out of the chase. Shinichi wanted to actually _catch_ him, to find out for himself. And if he never caught him... he guessed it would be fine too.

He didn't want his only way of relaxation to end. He _needed_ the breather that came with a murder-free heist every now and then; the challenge that was a genius gentleman thief.

  


As the clock struck the scheduled time, the lights flickered. Following Shinichi's prediction, the empty armors began moving, saluting as one. Grabbing their swords and shields, they marched in place.

  


One of them actually moved forward, heading directly for the display case, only to get tackled by the taskforce.

  


In retrospect, Shinichi mused, it was his own fault for lingering with the police instead of staying in the audience. He practically asked for it.

  


As soon as the armor hit the stone floor with a deafening clatter, the helmet fell off and a dark blue smoke emerged, engulfing the whole taskforce.

  


Not quite having expected that, Shinichi coughed into his hand, using the other to try fanning the smoke away.

His eyes widened when he felt something shift, a few quick touches, and in the matter of milliseconds cool fabric had replaced his suit.

  


He didn't quite comprehend what he was wearing now, didn't have time to, with the smoke dissipating and the appearance of a certain white-clad thief on top of the glass case.

The earrings were held between his fingers, the typical smirk firmly in place. Amusement was twinkling in the one visible eye.

  


“Ladies and Gentlemen!” He called out, bowing slightly and simultaneously ducking one of the simpler traps.

“Thank you for attending this memorable occasion. Travel through time and witness a replay of the legend of Princess Céline, starring our wonderful taskforce.”

  


Tipping his hat, he vanished in a puff of white smoke. As if waiting for that commando, the armors began walking towards the taskforce's members, who were dressed in various versions of knights, beggars and generally medieval-clad men.

  


Nakamori-keibu was wearing a pompous royal cape, the fabric too heavy to move freely, and an elaborate crown on top of his head. His face was a worrying shade of purple as he screamed at his men to stop fooling around with the fake armors and find the blasted thief.

  


Shinichi allowed himself to watch the spectacle of them chasing a dummy through the whole ballroom to the shouts of the enraged “king”. KID had managed to re-enact the part of the legend with little to no effort.

  


A barely audible crash – it was rather loud, but with the commotion easily overheard – from upstairs had Hakuba perk up.

  


“One of my traps.” He grinned, taking off up the stairs. The bells of his colorful costume, a fool, tinkled.

  


Shinichi was about to follow him, only to nearly fall flat on his face when he stumbled over... his own costume.

His face heated immediately; KID had put him in a royal blue ball gown. Not the kind of joke he appreciated. He could even feel a diadem perched on top of his own head.

  


However, this was not the time to dwell on it. He was sure KID was upstairs, though surely not in one of Hakuba's traps.

He gathered up the bothersome skirt to run upstairs, yelled for Nakamori to get there too. He passed a tied up fool, caught in his own trap, and dashed towards the corner he had just seen the white cape vanish behind.

  


The chase ended in a large suite-like bedroom. As soon as he had entered it, the door fell close and a lock fell in place.

  


Shinichi didn't switch on the lights, as he could see KID just fine through the open balcony doors, his white suit shining in the full moon.

  


Putting his face in a glare, the detective stalked outside and crossed his arms.

  


“Tantei-kun, I have to admit, this dress brings out the color of your gorgeous eyes quite nicely.”

  


“You're getting lazy. Only the armors and a few dummies, I'm a little disappointed.”

  


“You didn't enjoy the armor dance?” KID tilted his head, grin wide. “Or how fitting Nakamori-keibu was for the role of the outraged king?”

  


At the reminder, Shinichi couldn't help but give a small huff of laugh, shaking his head.

“I doubt that the thief back then stole the earrings from the king before presenting them to the princess.”

  


“I'm sure he stole them from _somewhere_.” He shrugged nonchalantly, the one visible eye fixated on the detective.

  


Shinichi was a little at loss at the intense stare and cleared his throat. He felt self-conscious, cursing himself for flushing.

The pounding on the locked door startled him out of his momentary daze.

  


“It's, uhm,” he cleared his throat again, “it's not very accurate, either way.”

  


“Ever the critic.” KID tsk'ed and shook his head, elegantly jumping down from the stone railing to stand in front of Shinichi.

“How is it not accurate, my dear princess?”

  


“D-Don't call me that.” Shinichi scolded, trying to keep a stern tone when he mostly felt unsure at the moment.

It was the tone, he figured. KID was not using his usual teasing tone, not a hint of _joke_ in it.

His crossed arms tightened.

“You promised them a re-enact of the legend, but the main story takes place on the balcony. You don't have the audience here.”

  


“You think?” The smirk widened slightly at that. He was not at all perturbed by the pounding on the door.

  


Shinichi's eyes widened when KID cleared his throat and went down to one knee and holding out his arms.

  


“My dearest princess!” He called out, rather loud, as if on stage, “Thou requested the moon to be gifted to thou by thou chosen suitor. So I appear before thou, to fulfill thy request!”

  


With a flick of both wrists, he presented the earrings in his gloved hands.

  


“Behold!” He brought the jewels together, and they both watched the moon's light catch in it, making them shine brightly. “The moon, brought down to earth!”

  


The light reflected in those oh-so-blue eyes, their wondering glitter, the image was burned in the thief's memory.

  


Unfortunately the moment was broken by the door finally giving in to the combined forces of one king and a freed fool.

  


KID flicked his wrist again, vanishing the earrings. Instead, he grabbed both of Shinichi's hands, touching his lips to the knuckles.

“You'd make a gorgeous princess bride, Tantei-kun.”

  


With a cheeky wink, KID was gone in a burst of doves, leaving Shinichi to gape, fists tightening around the earrings the thief had slipped into them.

  


What the actual heck?

  


**xxx**

  


It turned out to be one of the longest nights for Shinichi. Contrary to his earlier beliefs, KID _did_ have an audience. How he had managed to miss a _camera_ was beyond him, but obviously it had been there.

And the live-feed had been projected to a gigantic screen that had showed up in the ballroom.

  


Of course.

  


He should've expected it. Honestly. What he didn't get is why KID had chosen _him_ for the role of the princess.

  


It _suggested_ things. Things that simply couldn't be true.

  


“For the millionth time, Nakamori-keibu, I'm _not_ involved with KID.” Shinichi stated in an exhausted tone, rubbing his temples.

  


“Don't give me that crap, boy! That has to be the reason he always gives the loot back to you!”

  


Hakuba cleared his throat, speaking up for the first time since the whole interrogation started.

“Keibu, I believe Kudo-san. However, that doesn't mean Kaitou KID _doesn't_ show any romantic interest in him. One-sided, I might add.”

  


“This is ridiculous.” Shinichi sighed. “He's just being his usual flirty self, right?”

  


“Not to this extent, I'd say.” Hakuba tapped his cup of tea. “It's safe to say he fancies you. We could work with that.”

  


“I'm not playing bait. I don't have time for that. And it's not even my division.”

  


“You'd only have to attend his next heist, stay in the crowd and don't draw attention to yourself. If he seeks you out like that, we'd know for sure and can use it to lure him into a trap.”

  


Shinichi sighed. “He won't just fall for such a trap. If he was so careless, he'd already have been caught.”

  


“Are you saying we're not effective?!” Nakamori exclaimed, slamming his hands on the table.

  


The blue-eyed detective refrained from pointing out that they've chased an obvious dummy for an embarrassing long time just hours ago.

Instead, he stood up.

  


“If I have time when the next heist is announced, I might attend. If not, I won't. Chasing a rather harmless thief is not my top priority, especially if there are dangerous murderers on the loose.”

  


With that, Shinichi left the inspector's office, taking a deep breath when he finally stepped out into the clear night air.

  


Up on top of a nearby building, Kaito was snickering to himself. He should be offended that his detective called him “harmless”, but the message behind it was clear.

He made sure to tail him, seeing he'd get home safely, while he kept listening to the conversation in Nakamori's office.

  


“ _That brat. The nerve!”_

  


“ _KID's interest in Kudo is working to our favor.”_

  


“ _Yeah right, you heard Megure's lapdog. He won't assist us.”_

  


Kaito imagined the blond nuisance giving his stupid stuck-up smirk.

  


“ _He doesn't have to. Kudo doesn't attend that many heists,”_

  


“ _Thank fuck.” Nakamori murmured._

  


“ _which means, if KID is really as smitten with him as it appears, he will approach him sooner or later in his civilian form.”_

  


“ _So... we just have to monitor who the brat associates with...”_

  


“ _Exactly. We'd have a good chance at finding Kaitou KID's real identity.”_

  


Kaito scowled, ripping out the earbud and cursing inwardly. He's so gonna get back at Hakuba for that, big time.

Of course he's known he couldn't let it go on like that forever. He would've to reveal himself to Tantei-kun if he wanted to have an actual future with him.

  


Leave it to Hakuba to spoil it all. With the blond already seeing him as prime suspect in being KID, Kuroba Kaito suddenly showing up to woo Shinichi would give him the unnecessary leverage he didn't need.

  


Showing up in disguise wouldn't do any good either. He wanted to leave a good impression on his detective, after all.

No, he needed a plan.

  


**xxx**

  


“We rarely see each other anymore.”

  


Kaito smiled at his pouting childhood friend. “That's why I decided to pick you up from your class today, Ahoko.”

  


“Are you eating dinner with us?” Aoko asked, holding up her bag of groceries.

  


“Y'know, I really missed your cooking, my bestest friend.”

  


Aoko pushed at his shoulder, making him laugh. “Bakaito.”

  


“Careful. Man, I already pity the criminals you'll be putting behind bars soon.”

  


Pleased as punch, the woman grinned as they reached their street.

  


“Hold on, I need to check my mailbox real quick.” He hasn't been home in two days, having been away at some hotel for a magic show.

It had been paid greatly, his fame picking up all over Japan. With the fanmail, his letterbox was always rather full.

  


A handful of letters in hand, he followed Aoko into her house. Nakamori-keibu was already at home, reading the newspaper with a cup of coffee.

  


After a short round of greeting, Aoko went to prepare dinner while Kaito began opening his letters, reading some of them out loud to share them with his surrogate family.

  


“Huh?” Kaito blinked at an unmarked envelope. There was no address, no sender, nothing.

Nakamori looked up and watched him open it, revealing a card.

  


“ _I know who you are. Daddy can't protect you anymore. I'll be coming for you soon, boy. You will pay for your failures._ ” He read out loud. “... Is that supposed to be a tasteless joke?”

  


“Doesn't look like a joke to me...” Nakamori mumbled, taking the card. There was no signature, either.

  


“Oh well,” Kaito let his poorly concealed agitation show, hunching up his shoulders as he laughed it off, “every great celebrity has a few haters. It's to be expected.”

  


“That looks like a valid threat...” Aoko gasped as she read the note herself over her father's shoulders. “Shouldn't we get you a bodyguard or something?”

  


“Ahoko, calm down. It's just anti-fanmail. I doubt anyone is stupid enough to attack me.”

  


“I don't know... I've got a bad feeling about this.”

  


Kaito took the card and vanished it with a flick of his wrist. “Don't worry about it. If anything happens I'll call for help. No need to cause a fuss because of one silly note.”

  


However, the elder Nakamori insisted on walking him home, despite his house being just across the street.

The protectiveness was heartwarming, really.

  


“Thank you, Naka-... oh...”

  


Both pairs of eyes zero-ed in on the splintered wood of the front door, standing slightly ajar.

  


Pulling out his gun, the inspector pushed Kaito behind him and entered the apartment.

  


There was utter chaos. Clothes, books, shattered plates, everything was strewn across the rooms. On the coffee table was a single white card.

  


_'No police.'_

  


**xxx**

  


“Whoever did this was smart enough to not leave any fingerprints behind.”

  


“If he breaks into a magician's home he's stupid, not smart.” Kaito brooded, arms folded.

  


Hakuba, having been called by a worried Aoko, rubbed at his chin. “Did you offend anyone?”

  


“Not intentionally. And not that I know of... At least nothing that would lead to _this_.”

  


“Could it be a crazy fan?” Aoko asked, a crease between her eyebrows. “Or, a rival? I mean, that they mentioned your father would imply it's about your career as magician...”

  


“You're getting really good at this.” Hakuba allowed a small smile to show on his face. Aoko grinned at the praise.

  


Kaito barely refrained from rolling his eyes. “Since they said I would pay for my failures, whatever they mean, I'd say it's not a fan. And a rival would mean it's a fellow magician... which wouldn't make much sense. A magician wouldn't have needed to destroyed my front door.”

  


“Maybe it was just to prove a point. To scare you, you know?”

  


“I'm not scared, I'm furious. This is my mom's apartment, after all.”

  


“You can stay at our house for the time-being.” Aoko offered immediately. “And we _really_ should get you a bodyguard.”

  


“The intruder said not to call the police.” Kaito pointed out. “And I really don't want to be shadowed by a policeman 24/7.”

  


“This is serious, Bakaito. I'm worried about you.”

  


“If they know you live here, they probably also know that Nakamori-keibu lives right next door. It's possible they infiltrated the police force already.”

  


Nakamori narrowed his eyes at Hakuba. “You think it's _that_ serious?”

  


“If it was only to unsettle Kuroba, the culprit would've just sent the notes. The fact that they went as far as to break in and thrash the place means they're not joking.” The blond frowned at Kaito.

“It could be he was waiting here for you to come home, and when you didn't come because you were having dinner with the Nakamoris, he went wild.”

  


Aoko had paled, gripping Kaito's arm. “I don't care if you don't feel like you're in danger, you need to be protected!”

  


“The problem I see here,” Hakuba stated, “is that we have no leads whatsoever with your, er, fanbase. Anyone hired to protect you could be the culprit in disguise. We don't know how long they planned this, it could be he even infiltrated the police station. Perhaps he bugged it, so he'd know if you'd call the police.”

  


Nakamori rubbed a hand over his face. “Aren't we giving them too much credit? We don't know anything about them yet.”

  


“Well, my dad was a magician, and I am too. We've set up a few pranks in case of an intruder, and he managed to not trigger any of them despite the bold entry...” Kaito mused, expression uncharacteristically serious, which kind of threw Hakuba off.

  


Was it _really_ that serious?

  


“For now, you should stay at keibu's place. We'll think about something to ensure your safety.”

  


**xxx**

  


“This... sounds weird.”

  


Shinichi couldn't help but agree. When Hakuba had called in an emergency meeting, this wasn't what he had expected.

  


The first thing that was unusual was that he'd been called to a lesser crowded part of Tokyo, a district Shinichi only barely _heard_ of.

  


Crammed into a booth in a rather shady looking coffee shop, he was surprised by the presence of not only Hattori and Sera, but also four other people in their twenties.

  


Hakuba had introduced them as brilliant minds, detectives from all over Japan he had encountered during travels with his father.

A woman, and three men.

Each of them had been tested by Hakuba himself, asked questions only them would know. His own way of making sure they were, well, themselves.

  


The reason for the emergency meeting was a that apparently an old acquaintance, a friend, had been threatened and his apartment completely thrashed.

No fingerprints, no leads.

  


The case itself sounded interesting enough, though it wasn't their usual metier.

  


Shinichi had vaguely heard of the uprising magician Kuroba Kaito, through Sonoko's typical girl talk, which he had dismissed as her usual fawning.

The son of famous Kuroba Toichi, who had been killed in one of his shows. Common opinion was that it had been an accident, but Shinichi wasn't too sure, even by only a cursory glance at the details.

  


Either way, right now Kaito was the target of threats.

  


“It's unconventional, but without the police as an option there isn't much else we can do.”

  


“This is stupid.” Ryuga, one of the other detectives stated, arms crossed. “Just put him into witness protection or under surveillance or something.”

  


“Yeah, I don't have the time to play babysitter for a... a magician.” The woman, Emi, wrinkled her freckled nose.

  


Hakuba rubbed at his temple more or less patiently. “Kuroba is doing his shows for a living, so witness protection is out of question. And any surveillance devices we placed were mysteriously destroyed.”

  


That piqued the detectives' interest indeed. The blond continued. “It doesn't help that Kuroba doesn't take to well to being 'babysat', as you put it. So setting him up with a bodyguard won't work. We don't trust any stranger, and we have reason to believe the station is bugged, so an officer in disguise won't do either.”

  


Hence the plan he and Nakamori-keibu had worked out.

  


Under the pretense of a sort of week-long detective meeting at a mansion in the mountains, courtesy of Hakuba's father, which each of them would bring a guest to, they would work together on finding out who was out for the magician's life.

  


Kuroba being Hakuba's plus one, it wouldn't draw too much suspicion, and if the culprit _did_ try anything, he's for sure be caught with eight excellent detectives around.

It was also giving them an excuse to “hang out” with the magician afterwards, to ensure his safety and gather clues as to who the psycho was. With their numbers, they could work in shifts, too.

  


With them being all around Kaito's age, the magician had reluctantly agreed, since it wasn't so much babysitting as it would've been with a grim old bodyguard.

  


“But are these measures really necessary?” Shinichi gestured to the lot of them. “I mean, _eight_ detectives for this?”

  


“Yeah, there are a few murder cases that are a more pressing matter.”

  


The half-Brit took a sip from his tea. “You have a week to think about it and to wrap up your open cases. And of course you can still continue working after the week, the meeting is just to give everyone a reason for knowing Kuroba personally. We'll just have to take turns spending time with him afterwards, to make sure we find the culprit before he actually harms him.”

  


There was silence afterwards, the detectives mulling it over.

  


Sera was the first to react, slapping her hands on the table. “Well, I surely won't decline a paid vacation.”

  


Heiji shrugged and leaned back in his seat. “I'll go if Kudo's going.”

  


Shinichi sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. He wasn't sure if all this was as urgent as it appeared to be, but if he could prevent a possible murder, it was definitely worth it.

  


Despite his full schedule, and his last encounter with Hakuba, Shinichi couldn't turn down the plea for help from his fellow detective.

  


“Fine, I'm in.”

  


* * *

  



	2. Chapter 2

* * *

Heiji gave a whistle as they reached the mansion a week later. “Hakuba surely cares about this friend of his.”

The building was indeed unnecessarily large, the style an interesting mix between japanese and obviously british, They were surrounded by trees and Shinichi couldn't help but feel exposed in this environment.

“There's too many possibilities for intruders to get in unnoticed...”

“We're in the middle of nowhere, I doubt they'd follow him here. Especially not to a supposed detective meeting.” Hattori waved him off.

The girls, Kazuha, Ran, Sera and Sonoko, were already on their way inside, the latter leading the chatter about meeting the charming magician.

Shinichi hummed. “Let's just find the culprit fast.”

“No reason we can't enjoy the free stay. I heard there's an onsen too.”

The blue-eyed detective rolled his eyes good-naturedly before the two of them also entered the mansion.

Inside, the girls were already surrounding a grinning man, about the height of Shinichi, maybe a little taller. He was demonstrating a few simple tricks, getting delighted squeals from both Kazuha and Sonoko when he presented them with a flower each.

“You're early.” Hakuba had walked up to his colleagues.

“Sonoko wouldn't shut up about meeting him.” Shinichi gestured to the magician. “Have the others also decided to come?”

“Emi-san and Ryuga did. Six of us should be enough. Of course I could try to find the culprit by myself, but Kuroba is... well. A handful. Being stuck alone with him 24/7 is not something I fancy. You'll see for yourself soon.”

“That doesn't really make me feel better.” Heiji raised a brow, tone slightly annoyed. “If the guy is a serious nutcase you should've told us beforehand.”

“You know, I really hope you keep that attitude up. Kuroba will have a field day.”

“If this all is just an elaborate plan to piss-”

“Hattori.” Shinichi stopped his friend, rolling his eyes. So much for enjoying the stay.

“Ah, the famous detectives of the east and west.” The magician called out when he spotted them, gaze wary though curious as he stepped closer.

“I do hope you're not as boring as Hakuba-dearest here.”

“Psh, don't push me under the same rug as him.” Heiji declared, holding out his hand. “Hattori Heiji.”

Taking the hand, Kaito grinned and yanked, making Heiji stumble into a sudden puff of rainbow-colored smoke.

The Osakan detective caught himself, though when he stepped out of the smoke, he was met with joyful laughter of the female occupants.

“Great new hairstyle, Hattori-kun.” Sera teased, grinning widely at her fellow detective.

Hakuba was also fighting a smirk, glad he wasn't going to be the only victim of Kuroba's tricks for the week.

Scandalized, Heiji grabbed his now colorful hair, eyes wide as he went in search of a mirror. The girls were following him eagerly, excited for his reaction.

“The bathroom's the third door to the right.” Hakuba called out helpfully, though a step towards the direction proved to be a mistake as he heard a _-click-_ and his own clothes were suddenly colored a neon pink.

“Kuroba...”

“What a nice color, Hakuba. Though it clashes horribly with your skin tone. You should probably get changed before your next guests arrive.” Kaito grinned innocently, inwardly smirking in a very KID-like manner.

As expected, the blond stalked off while grumbling in english under his breath, leaving only Kaito and Shinichi by the door.

The detective stared at him warily, hands clenched to fists when Kaito held out his hand to him with an amused expression.

“Aw, don't worry, you haven't done anything to make me want to prank you yet.”

“And Hattori has?”

“He called me a nutcase.” Kaito shrugged nonchalantly, hand still in the air between them.

Shinichi hesitated only a second more before taking it. Something about this magician had made him suspicious, but of course he couldn't be sure of it.

That was, until Kaito changed the grip on his hand to hold it in a way that was becoming increasingly familiar and bowed his head to press a kiss to the detective's knuckles.

Realization slapped Shinichi in the face, his cheeks instantly coloring at the wink sent his way.

“Nice to meet you, Tantei-kun.”

Whatever Shinichi had wanted to say was interrupted by Heiji storming back into the entrance hall, his whole head wet from where he had tried to wash out the dye in the sink.

The girls were not far behind, holding their stomachs from laughing so hard.

“It doesn't wash out!”

**xxx**

Shinichi's questioning would have to wait. And boy, did he have questions.

It didn't take a genius to know Kuroba Kaito was the high school acquaintance Hakuba suspected of being KID.

Really, the blond had met KID way more times than Shinichi had, if not as close up and minus the conversations, and it was painfully obvious if you compared them.

Then again, the detective mused during dinner, Kaito was a damn good actor. He was acting very differently from his thief persona.

More open and innocent and all laughs, even if it was just for show.

Since he was also a close friend of Nakamori-keibu's daughter without her suspecting anything, he sure knew how to hide any evidence.

And without proof, it was impossible to actually catch him.

It made so much sense if he really thought about it. Kuroba Toichi must've been the original KID, who had vanished when the magician had died. Not as much a coincidence as people seemed to think.

Eight years after, KID was back, appearing younger than the former. Kaito must've been around seventeen then, taking up the mantle.

Fitting it to what Shinichi already knew – that KID was looking for a special jewel – it added up quite nicely. Maybe the original phantom thief had been looking for it too, and Kaito tried to find it now.

It did make him wonder just who was threatening him. Maybe it was the same people who had supposedly killed his father.

“So what do you think about him?”

Shinichi blinked out of his musings when Hakuba leaned closer to talk quietly into his ear during dessert.

“He seems nice enough. I reckon the culprit is not a fan, but either jealous of his fame or someone who already had a grudge against his father.”

“That's not what I meant.”

Hakuba glanced at Kaito, making sure he was still occupied in his current impromptu show of dancing fruit.

Inwardly shaking his head, Shinichi feigned being clueless, waiting patiently for the blond to elaborate.

“Does he seem... familiar to you?”

“Well, he _does_ look a bit like me.”

The brown eyes narrowed at him, but Shinichi only blinked at him, looking at him innocently through his lashes as he's learned during his time as Conan.

“You've never met him before?”

“... No? I mean, could be I've seen one of his shows before. Or well, on TV.”

Hakuba leaned back in his seat and folded his arms, eyeing Kaito again. Even if he was KID, and he was sure he was, he wouldn't be dumb enough to blow his cover like this and throw himself at Kudo... right?

Especially in times like these, with someone out for his head.

“Alright, enough of these shenanigans.” Ryuga spoke up, getting the attention of the table's occupants.

“I'd like to get some work done.”

Kaito had already grown to dislike him. He was snobbish, full of himself, too confident for his own good.

Research had brought up that he was specialized in the theft division down in the south of Japan, only sometimes helping out in arson cases as well.

He was squeamish when it came to blood, that's why he stayed away from murders and such.

A lot of temper, not unlike Tantei-han.

Ryuga had watched him perform a few simple tricks for the girls, and it was easy to see his frustration when he couldn't figure out how they worked. The dislike was mutual.

The other new detective, Emi, was specialized in kidnappings and hostage situations. She had a good success rate, a soft spot for kids and animals, and had a tendency to over-analyze. Perhaps problematic childhood, but that was only speculation.

She was probably too emotional for this line of work, but Kaito could work around this. He was lucky she's never met KID, or he'd be in trouble.

In a puff of glitter, Kaito vanished his pack of cards and folded his arms on the table.

“Sure.” He shrugged. “Though I'm sure Hakuba has already told you every little detail.”

“Do you have any idea what failures the culprit was talking about?”

“If I did, we wouldn't be here.”

“Oookay, if the boring detective talk starts now, I'm gonna try out the onsen.” Sonoko declared loudly, hooking arms with Ran and Kazuha to drag them off.

“Are you coming too?”

Ryuga's girlfriend nodded after glancing at him and hurried after the girls.

Emi tugged at her bottom lip. “Do you know if your father was involved in any dangerous businesses? The Yakuza? Maybe the failures are tied to him, in a way.”

“Not that I know of. Though I was only eight when he died, so I couldn't say.”

Kaito kept his carefully crafted mask on, while he cackled wildly on the inside. He knew he was playing a dangerous game, surrounding himself with detectives, but it was for the greater good.

He answered the questions the collective asked, glancing at Shinichi every now and then.

His favorite critic had yet to speak up, those enchanting sapphire eyes trained on the table top as he was in his thinking pose.

Kaito was sure Shinichi had already recognized him, but the magician wouldn't spell it out for him. They had all week to properly get to know each other, after all.

Some would say the reveal was rather anti-climatic, and he'd have preferred something more spectacular too. However, as the situation was, he'd have to make do with what he had. Plus, the detective's blush when he had kissed his hand had given him the flutters either way.

He'd have to save the breath-taking ideas for future dates, he thought with glee.

Inside Shinichi's mind, thoughts ran wild in completely other directions.

He knew for a fact that there was at least one sniper out for KID's life. Possibly chasing the same jewel the thief was.

The first part of the message could very well apply to him being the phantom thief. _I know who you are._

The person probably knows his father has been the former KID. _Daddy can't protect you anymore._

The failures... could they mean his failure at retrieving the special jewel?

He'd definitely need to talk to Kuroba in private. It's not like he could just lay out his musings and reveal his secret identity here.

“Oi, Kudo, you got any idea?”

Blue eyes blinked at Hattori's words. “Oh, no, not yet.”

“S'weird. That the culprit hasn't tried anything else yet, don'tcha think?”

“They may be dumb, but not dumb enough to attack me while I'm staying at Nakamori-keibu's house.” Kaito said, feigning a yawn.

“Whatever, I'm going to bed.”

“I'm coming with you.”

“Ew, Hakuba, I can't take any more of your boring presence. Especially not in the bedroom.”

Sera and Hattori snickered, while the blond narrowed his eyes in annoyance.

“The reason for this stay is to keep you safe. You're not running around alone.” He glanced at Shinichi, the beginnings of a smirk making the corners of his mouth twitch.

“Kudo-san, would you mind accompanying him to his room?”

“I don't need a babysitter.” Kaito whined, crossing his arms.

“No, Hakuba-san's right.” Shinichi got up from his seat. “We shouldn't take any risks.”

“Fiiiine. I hope you're not as much of a stick in the mud as him at least.” The magician waved him off as he began walking towards the staircase.

Shinichi rolled his eyes as he followed, feeling eyes on his back until they vanished in an upstairs hallway.

“You're playing with fire, you know that, right?” The detective spoke up when he caught up with the relaxed strides of the magician.

“I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about, Tantei-kun.” The KID-grin was razor sharp.

Shaking his head, Shinichi sighed. “Whatever. But seriously, if it's that sniper-”

Kaito tilted his head, raising a brow in surprise. When did his tantei meet Snake?

“I'm not worried about him.” He shrugged. This was as much as he'd admit, and only to soothe the, dare he say, _concerned_ detective.

“He's not smart enough for that.”

Shinichi frowned. “There's not much intelligence required to thrash an apartment and write a threat.”

“No, but to thrash it without triggering any of _my traps_ you'd need an eye as sharp as yours and lots of time to disable them.”

“Then... do you have a suspect?”

“Nah, nothing. But it's fine. It's the Nakamoris that worry too much and Hakuba, of course.”

The tension in Shinichi's shoulders lessened some at the somewhat carefree tone. Since Kuroba was KID, he could very well take care of himself if needed, better than any civilian. And if KID wasn't scared, maybe it would be fine.

They walked in silence to a door at the end of a hall. Kaito wiggled his eyebrows before stroking his hands over the expanse of it in a quick movement. A second later the double doors swung open magically.

Shinichi gave him an unimpressed look, to which Kaito only grinned widely and bowed slightly to invite the detective into the room.

“You made sure Hakuba wasn't present when you introduced yourself to me. So he wouldn't see how I'd react. If I'd recognize you.”

“That's random. But spot on, just as I'd expect of my favorite little critic.”

Sharp blue eyes fixated on the magician, only to fall away as a slight blush crept up on his cheeks.

“Uhm.”

“I would've offered you a rose, though that would've been a little _too_ obvious.”

“You should really tone down your flirting. Nakamori-keibu and Hakuba already think they can use me to lure you into a trap at heists.”

“Mh, I have to admit it could work with such an alluring bait.”

Frowning, Shinichi looked up to meet the intense indigo gaze, and gulped. When had the magician stepped so close?

It was the first time he could see both eyes clearly, without the monocle in the way, and it did nothing to make them less mysterious.

“Stop that.”

“Do you really want me to?”

“... Yes.”

Kaito was amused. “You hesitated.”

“Did not! This... this is not the time for flirtations, there's someone threatening you.”

Another step closer. “So if there wasn't someone threatening me, you'd let me continue?”

Shinichi felt his cheeks heat up even more, not daring to meet those eyes again. He crossed his arms in front of his chest in defense. “I'm not fond of jokes like these.”

“Who says I'm joking?”

“Tch. Only an idiot would flirt with a detective that tries to capture him.”

“Ah, ah, you're not trying to capture me. Murderers are your priority.”

He managed a glare. Obviously the thief's been eavesdropping when he had his interrogation with Hakuba and Nakamori.

“I could change my mind. Especially if you keep this up.”

“Hey, I never confessed to anything. No proof, no arrest.” Kaito couldn't help but smile at how flustered he managed to get his detective.

This was going quite well, if he was honest. Judging his body language, Shinichi wasn't downright denying him.

He was not even stepping back, even though Kaito had come close enough to feel his body's warmth. Then again, he probably hasn't noticed the close proximity yet with how he forced himself to stare at the closed window.

Kaito allowed himself to enjoy the moment, the tantalizing scent of the slightly shorter man. Was that his shampoo? He definitely needed to find out which he was using.

“Hakuba will think _this_ as enough proof. Why do you think did he sent _me_ up with you?”

“I don't remember Kuroba Kaito seeking you out on his own accord. It was Hakuba who brought you here and forces us to interact.” The magician murmured, tempted to lean in to bury his nose in the dark brown locks.

“We're here because a maniac thrashed your apartment and threatened you.”

“Mh. You didn't answer my earlier question.” Kaito tilted his head, smiling when Shinichi squirmed under his gaze but still refused to look at him.

“You don't even know me. I don't get why you're suddenly interested in me.”

“It's not so suddenly. And I know more about you than you'd expect.”

“You're a stalker.”

“Such an extreme word. I'm just curious about my prey.”

“So you see me as one of your heist targets?”

“Well, you're certainly more beautiful than any of the jewels. And your eyes are more brilliant than any sapphire I've ever seen.”

“KID-”

“Kaito. And to answer your question; no, I don't see you as _that_ kind of target.” Tired of the detective avoiding his gaze, Kaito grabbed his jaw, delighted when those blue eyes met his more or less willingly.

“I never cared about those jewels. They're uninteresting, disposable. You on the other hand...” He allowed his thumb to caress the smooth skin. “You've been haunting my thoughts for a long while now. And once I've captured you, I won't give you back.”

“Good luck then, because I'm not falling for it.” Shinichi jerked his head away from the grip, but stood his ground.

“So you're giving me permission to try?”

“T-that... I didn't say that!”

“But you didn't outright tell me off either.”

Shinichi blinked, cheeks tinging pink again. Seriously, what were the odds of the handsome phantom thief being honestly interested in him? He had mostly only met him as Conan, why would he suddenly develop romantic feelings for him?

It had to be an experiment for him. Yes. A challenge, to see if he could seduce the detective. Really, he should just humor him so he'd lose interest. Not reacting should work. That also meant he had to get this stupid blush under control.

He held up his hands and shook his head, stepping back. “You know what, go ahead and try all you want. If anything, it'll get Hakuba on the right track.”

Kaito grinned widely, eyes glinting with mirth. “Don't underestimate my skills. I know how to handle Tantei-san.”

Shinichi rolled his eyes and made towards the door.

“Where are you going?”

“I still need to find my own room. It's getting late.”

“This _is_ your room.” The magician said nonchalantly.

“... What?”

“Yes. I wanted to talk to you freely, and Hakuba bugged _my_ room.”

It was kind of embarrassing. His bag was suddenly overly obvious on the foot of the bed.

Shinichi rubbed the crease between his eyes.

“I'm just going to ignore that you unlocked _my_ room without a key. Come on, then I'm going to bring you to _your_ room before Hakuba notices.”

“No worries, I'm right next door.”

**xxx**

“So...” Kaito raised a brow, warily eyeing Hakuba as he sipped on his cup of chocolate the next morning.

“Yes?”

“I went to bed exactly thirteen and a half minutes after you and Kudo-san left. And I noticed you weren't in your room when I wanted to check up on you.”

“Oh, yeah. We kinda got lost in the labyrinth that you call hallways. You should really consider color-coding or something.”

Hakuba's eyes narrowed in annoyance. “I find that hard to believe.”

“Don't worry, I'll help you choosing colors. I suggest something blue or muted violet for the bedroom wing, as it's calming.”

The blond rubbed his temples, making Kaito chuckle inwardly. That had to be a new record for him.

“Anyways, what do you think of Kudo-san?”

“He's certainly not as boring as you.”

When he didn't elaborate, Hakuba raised a brow. “That's all you have to say? No comment about his looks? The eyes? Anything?”

“Sheesh, Hakuba, one would think you're crushing on your fellow detective.”

“That's not-”

They were interrupted, much to the blond's dismay, by Shinichi stumbling into the kitchen.

The Heisei Holmes looked still half-asleep, hair disheveled and sapphire eyes hidden under heavy lids. He didn't even acknowledge the other occupants in his quest to find coffee.

Both Hakuba and Kaito watched the display, the magician with hidden fondness and amusement, and the detective in bafflement. He's never seen Shinichi in such a state.

“Kudo-san?”

Shinichi mumbled something incoherently, blinking his tired eyes repeatedly, trying to clear them in vain.

“Come again?”

Kaito was on the verge of squealing very unmanly when the brunet cutely rubbed at his eyes.

“Coffee?” He tried again, voice hopeful and eyes wide. Kaito was sure he'd picked that look up when he'd been Conan.

Hakuba and Kaito simultaneously gestured to where the half-full pot of coffee was sitting on the counter behind him.

Shinichi blinked again, mumbling a thanks before turning around to pour himself a cup.

The magician leaned closer to Hakuba. “You know, now that you mentioned it, I totally understand why you'd crush on him. He's _adorable_.” He whispered.

“I'm not-” The blond stopped himself, taking a deep and calming breath. When he spoke again, it was in a quieter voice. “I'm not crushing on Kudo-san.”

He glanced at Shinichi, who was solely concentrating on sipping on the cup of coffee. “I was just thinking that he's kind of your type. I thought you'd be interested.”

“Eh, while he's not as much of a stick in the mud, he's still a detective.” Kaito shrugged, feigning disinterest while cackling madly on the inside.

Hakuba's mouth twisted. This wasn't going like he had planned. He had assumed Kaito would jump the chance to meet Shinichi as himself, the opportunity too good to pass up. Even if there was someone out for his life.

He casually, or what _he_ 'd call 'casually', leaned over, nodding towards his fellow detective, who was still blissfully oblivious to their conversation.

“So the way those pants barely cling to his hips doesn't affect you at all? The tousled bed hair?”

Kaito raised a questioning brow at the blond. “Should I leave you two alone for a minute?”

Fat chance he'd do that. He'd rather shave his own head.

“That won't be necessary.” Straightening, Hakuba gave him a 'gonna-keep-an-eye-on-you'-look before leaving the kitchen to join the rest of the guests in the dining room.

While Shinichi was pouring his second helping, starting to finally wake up properly, Kaito smiled into his own cup.

Those pants _did_ look fabulous on the detective's thin frame, and the dark hair couldn't have looked more sinful if Kaito had ruffled them himself. Preferably during a night of ravishing him. Ahem.

He wanted to tell him how absolutely adorable he was, if only to see him blush in that cute way again. But he was pretty sure Hakuba was spying on them.

Leave it to the nuisance to think about _that_ while his friend was threatened by some freak.

“Good Morning.” Shinichi's voice sounded clearer now.

Kaito smirked, once again hiding it in his cup until it was more friendly instead of leering. “Morning to you too. Slept well?”

Shinichi shrugged and ran his free hand through his hair, trying to straighten it. “I've been going over possible suspects. I could ask my contacts in-”

“Pleeeeaase can we not talk about this? I'm tired of the topic.” Indigo eyes flickered to the door, indicating he thought they were being spied on.

Catching on, Shinichi took another sip from his coffee. “Well, it _is_ the reason we're all here. One would think you'd be more concerned about being in danger.”

“Like I said, it's the people around me that worry. I can take care of myself.”

“I doubt they're gonna be stopped by discolored hair.”

“Please, I've got way more tricks up my sleeve. You want a demonstration?”

The raised brow and challenging expression was stirring Kaito's insides. It made him want to push the detective up against a wall and just show him who was in control. He'd wipe this cocky look off his face, wanted to replace it with one of pure ecstasy. He'd be gorgeous with flushed cheeks, mouth open in wanton moans-

“I'll pass.” Shinichi averted his gaze then, the tips of his ears slightly pink.

Kaito was confused, he hadn't even _said_ anything to get this reaction. “Pity, really. I'd do my best to impress the great detective of the east.”

“I've been told that I'm quite the critic. I'm not easily impressed.” He cleared his throat, still not looking at Kaito. “I'm gonna see if the others made any progress. You might... uh... yeah.”

Not even glancing at the other, Shinichi fled the kitchen.

The magician blinked, puzzled by the hasty exit. Did he say anything that made his Tantei-kun uncomfortable?

Shaking his head, he moved to put the empty cup away, when he realized the reason for Shinichi's behavior.

Horrified, he noticed his stupidly sexy fantasies had affected him way more than he'd thought. Pokerface, yeah. Tell that to his dick.

He slammed his head on the counter top, groaning. How _embarrassing_.

**xxx**

“Seriously, how can you drink this? Black? To this extent?”

Shinichi looked up from his notebook, blinking himself out of thinking mode. The girls had gone hiking, having dragged Ryuga and Heiji along. Not that the two males were not jumping the chance at getting away from the mansion for a few hours.

A bored Kaito was a mischievous Kaito. And while most of his pranks were on the funny side for most of them, the two passionate detectives were sick of being the butt of almost every joke.

Shinichi had thought the latest prank on Ryuga had gone too far, with dye-filled balloons crashing down on him and his girlfriend in their room. It would've been funny, hadn't the red dye looked so much like blood that Ryuga had actually thrown up and scared his girlfriend enough that she'd almost fainted.

Kaito at least had the decency to apologize for his poor choice of color.

Either way, the blue-eyed detective had decided to use the quiet to work on some case files he had taken with him.

With Kaito stating he'd rather swallow barbed wire than going hiking, Hakuba was loathe to leave him and Shinichi alone in the mansion without a way to supervise them at all. So the blond had grabbed a book and joined his fellow detective in the sitting room.

Since the magician wasn't supposed to run around alone, he was more or less forced to be there too, slumped over the back of an armchair.

Shinichi demonstratively sipped from his cup. “Nobody's forcing _you_ to drink it. What's it to you?”

“This is your sixth cup, and it's not even noon yet!”

The blond rolled his eyes. “Now you're keeping track of his coffee consume?” It was his investigating voice.

Kaito kept his face neutral, giving a suffering sigh. “See, _that's_ how bored I am. I'm counting cups of coffee.”

“You could've joined the others.”

“I told you that I'm here for relaxation, not for strenuous hiking. The fact that I'm even talking to you is a testament of my desperation.”

Shinichi took pity on his colleague's nerves and intervened. “You could read something.”

“Boring.”

“Or work on new tricks for your shows?”

“Can't do that in front of nosy detectives.”

Hakuba pinched the bridge of his nose. “You're worse than a child. Seriously.”

Kaito stuck his tongue out and snapped his fingers, making colorful feathers sprout between the blond strands of the half-Brit.

The sight made Shinichi stifle a laugh into his fist and the magician grin.

“Haha.” Hakuba scowled.

“Glad I could entertain.”

“Why don't you just... I don't know, Go to the onsen or something.”

“You're letting me?” Kaito perked up. “Alone?”

Hakuba grimaced, glancing down at his book which he _really_ would like to continue reading. “Kudo-san, would you mind accompanying him?”

Shinichi blinked, shoulders rising subconsciously. “Oh. I'm actually working on this cold case...”

“Aw, pleeeaase...” Kaito whined. “This is a vacation. And I'm bored out of my mind!” He threw up his hands, having a burst of sticky confetti covering the floor, much to Hakuba's dismay.

Shinichi heaved a deep sigh. Well, at least he could take this chance to talk to KID in private. There was no way Hakuba bugged the onsen too, right?

“Fine, but only to save the carpet. And if I find one speck of glitter or anything on me, I won't help you again.”

“You're no fun.” Kaito rolled his eyes for show. “But alright. I will not prank you in the onsen.”

Shinichi stared at the horribly wide grin and moved to rub at his temples. No point dwelling on the loopholes in this statement. “Whatever.”

A few minutes later they were on the way to the small onsen.

“Are there any listening devices?”

“Nah.” Kaito shook his head, skipping ahead. “The steam would destroy them. And our host is too much a gentleman to bug a bath.”

“Not as much a gentleman as you though?” Shinichi couldn't help but say when the magician held the door open for him.

“Exactly.” Kaito grinned widely, inwardly as giddy as a teenage girl.

There hasn't been much progress in the flirting department, as the detective was way too focused on finding the culprit threatening him.

Shinichi pointedly looked away, pretending to check out the surroundings as he sank into the warm water.

For the moment, Kaito kept a polite distance to not scare the other away, observing him from afar with careful concern.

A few scars stood out on the pale skin, not unlike the ones on his own chest. What concerned him was the way he could see the ribs. His detective was far too thin to be healthy. And there were dark bags under his tired eyes.

“Are you planning a heist?”

Kaito raised a brow. “Why would you think that?”

Shinichi vaguely gestured at him. “You're quiet. And have this thoughtful expression.”

“If I was planning a heist, you'd get an advance notice, Meitantei.” Kaito tilted his head. “I was just observing that you seem pretty exhausted.”

Shinichi rubbed his wet hands over his face, fighting a yawn. “A little.” He glanced at his companion. “Don't be so concerned. I'm fine.”

“You don't look fine.”

He gave a humorless laugh, eyeing the magician with a tired smirk that had no right to be so sexy. “Not so attractive anymore, hm?”

“I didn't say that. Even at your worst you're still the most gorgeous person, Tantei-kun.”

Shaking his head, Shinichi sank a little lower into the water and closed his eyes. “You're incorrigible.”

“And _you_ are trying to change the topic. Do you have trouble sleeping?”

Shinichi took his time to answer. Why did Kaito even care? “Nightmares.” He admitted after a while.

“... About...?”

“Does it matter?”

“Sometimes talking about what scares you helps.”

“If I tell you, will you tell me about this sniper? It would help with the investigation, after all.”

This time Kaito was the one taking his time. He weighed the pros and cons, sighing. “I will, once we're back in Tokyo.” He caught and held Shinichi's gaze.

“I _know_ he can't be the culprit, but I guess I can't hide things from you if I want _us_ to work out, right?”

Shinichi found himself blushing a little at the intensity and implication, heartbeat speeding up a fraction.

“Um. Alright.” He tore his gaze away and cleared his throat, watching the rippling surface of the water instead. “But telling you about this doesn't mean I'm giving _us_ a chance.”

“We used to talk all the time about shitty topics after heists. It'll help.” Kaito evaded addressing the turn-down.

The detective sighed. “I guess you're right...”

“Is it about that Organization you took down?” Kaito gently urged.

“Kinda, yeah. It's hard to explain. My time as Conan... it messed me up. I've had all those gadgets, but I was... I don't know. Helpless.” He shrugged.

“Take my shoes and watch and I'm an ordinary weak grade schooler. And with an evil organization's crafty top agents out for me...”

He closed his eyes as an unpleasant shiver ran down his spine. “Even though the main organization is gone and I have my body back, I'm scared to sleep because I always expect to wake up to some sort of danger. Staring into guns, being kidnapped, everything. I know it's stupid, but-”

“It's not stupid, Shinichi.”

The detective looked at Kaito at the use of his given name. The magician had scooted closer, a warm and wet hand on his shoulder a source of comfort.

“If it had been me, I would've died already. Or, if I had miraculously survived, they could've put me straight into the loony bin.” He tilted his head. “Though if you ask my friends, I belong there anyways.”

That made Shinichi smile weakly.

“But seriously, considering all that, you're holding up quite well. If I hadn't studied you so closely, I wouldn't have noticed anything off.”

“So you admit you were stalking me?”

“Never.” Kaito grinned. “Oh, want me to sleep in your room? I could fend off any intruders. You might sleep better when you're not alone.”

Shinichi gave him a stare. “Sure. Why not share a bed while we're at it?”

“Well, if you're offering...”

The detective slapped the warm hand away and rolled his eyes. “If not even Haibara's sleeping aids are helping, I doubt the presence of a lunatic thief will.”

Kaito folded his arms in mock indignation. “May I remind you that I saved your life multiple times already? Your subconscious probably sees me as a protector, anyway.”

The snort of laughter that escaped Shinichi should've offended Kaito, instead he found himself smiling at the sound. He raised a brow, playing insulted.

“Sorry.” Shinichi tried to contain more laughter. “It's just... you're a _thief_. Not a knight in shining armor.”

“I'll have you know that we thieves are very protective of what we consider ours.”

The detective averted his gaze, cheeks heating slightly. “I'm not yours.”

“Yet.”

“Confident, aren't we?”

“Hm, you're comfortable enough with me touching you already. I'm pretty optimistic.”

Shinichi blinked, suddenly all too aware of Kaito's arm around him, with his hand resting on his hip and their thighs only a hair's width apart. When had that happened? How had he not noticed?!

Face red, he splashed the magician's face and hurried out of the water.

“Hey, you're not supposed to leave me by myself!”

“You have five minutes to get out, or I'm sending Hakuba in to keep you company!”

Kaito shuddered and hurried to follow him. His inner smirk stayed firmly put, though. After the catastrophic encounter in the kitchen the first morning, he was back to form. Things were slowly looking up, but the magician was nothing if not patient when it came to things he really wanted.

**xxx**

“This is utterly ridiculous.” Ryuga played with his lighter. “We have no leads whatsoever, and the culprit hasn't tried anything yet. The biggest hazard here is Kuroba himself.”

“Maybe thrashing the apartment was enough for him and he gave up?” Emi offered.

They had only two days left of their “vacation”, and it had been as calm as ever.

“We should be glad Kuroba-kun _hasn't_ been attacked.” Sera stretched her arms over her head. “He's really cool. I think spending time afterwards to make sure it stays that way is gonna be fun.”

“Psh, just because he treats you like a lady.” Heiji, hair still shimmering lightly in rainbow colors, snorted. “If you were pranked like we are, you'd think differently.”

“He just doesn't like being insulted.”

“I didn't even insult him!”

“You called him a complete nutcase.” Shinichi mumbled distractedly, trying to ignore the hidden listening devices he spotted.

Kaito had indeed been trying to court Shinichi, though there was no progress at all. The detective was solely concentrating on the case, even with nothing happening. And even though he knew the magician was coming on to him, he was as oblivious as ever.

It was frustrating on so many levels. But if there was something Kaito loved, it was a good challenge. And he did like the sharp focus the detective displayed during cases. However, he didn't appreciate being ignored.

“Either way,” Hakuba interrupted the upcoming chattering. “as it is, I'm not taking risks. Ryuga, Emi, Hattori, if you want to drop out after this week, it's fine.”

“... Don't I get to choose too?” Shinichi blinked.

“Knowing you, you wouldn't leave a case unsolved. Right?”

Shinichi leaned back in the armchair, nodding. Even if they'd call everything off, he'd investigate on his own.

He'd have to talk to KID – Kaito – before he'd contact his FBI acquaintances. Even if the sniper wasn't behind these threats, it wouldn't hurt to get him out of the way. However, this would have to wait until they were back home. Without nosy detectives around them.

“Nah, I'm gonna stay till the end too.” Heiji sighed. “Kazuha and I will rent a room or something.”

“You can stay with me.” Shinichi offered. “I have more than enough room in the monstrosity of a house.”

They'd have to meet somewhere else for their planning then, but that was fine.

“You have a big house?” The collective of detectives looked up at Kaito's enthusiastic shout as he appeared in a burst of confetti from seemingly nowhere.

“Duh. His dad's a famous author and his mom was a popular actress, of course he lives in a mansion.”

“I wouldn't exactly call it a mans-”

“Can I stay there too? My back is all achy from the Nakamoris' couch.” The magician rubbed at his back, completely for show. “And detective stick-in-the-mud won't let me stay with him. Not that I'd want to...”

Shinichi raised a brow at Kaito. What the heck was he planning? Inviting himself into a detective's house...

Hakuba rubbed his chin. “That might be a good idea. Staying at Nakamori-keibu's is probably scaring the culprit off. If he stays with you he might try something and we could catch him.”

“Eh, I refuse to stay under the same roof as him for an indefinite amount of time!” Heiji exclaimed, eyes narrowed as he crossed his arms in a childish way.

“You wound me. What's with the distrust?” Shinichi would bet his whole library that the magician was grinning beneath the fake pout.

“Let's see, you rainbow-colored my hair, covered my best pants in sticky glitter that just won't come off, and turned my favorite cap into a dove.”

Kaito tilted his head in an innocent fashion and held up his hands. “Your cap is safely tucked in Hakuba's back pocket.”

Hakuba jerked at that and fumbled with the bulging in mentioned pocket. Indeed, the cap was bunched up to fit there. How had Kaito managed that without him noticing?!

“Besides,” the magician continued, “I'd never steal from anyone.”

“Sure you don't.” Hakuba muttered under his breath as he threw the cap at Heiji. Out loud he said, “This behavior is probably what got you into the mess first place. The least you could do is not scare those away who try to help you.”

Bottom lip sticking out and face in a frown, Kaito folded his arms and sat down on the carpet, indian style. “You're all boring. Fine, if I promise to behave while we're at Kudo-kun's house, can I stay?”

Hattori eyed him warily, but relented under Sera's pointed stare. The magician did seem honest, at least.

“Whatever. But if you touch any of my things-”

“I promise on my magician's honor that I won't touch any of your things.”

Shinichi watched the exchange with resignation. It spelled disaster. Disaster under his own roof. Well, his parents' roof. Still.

“If you two can't behave I'm throwing you both out.” He felt the need to say, if only to remind them that they were bargaining the technicalities of staying at _his_ house.

“So you don't mind if I stay over too?”

“Like Hakuba-san said, it's our best bet. It could lure the culprit out without putting you in any unnecessary danger.”

“Alright, then we can work on a schedule so we can each continue our cases and keep an eye on Kuroba and the possible attacker.”

While Hakuba, Sera and Hattori set to planning, Kaito couldn't help but wink at Shinichi, enjoying how he fought in vain to keep from blushing.

He had no idea what KID had up his sleeves, but he doubted it was anything as harmless as flowers or doves.

Then again, with Heiji and Kazuha staying there too, there wasn't much he _could_ do...

… Right?

* * *


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll be honest, I didn't proof-read this one. I had trouble finishing it too, so... well. I hope you still enjoy!

* * *

When Shinichi entered his house after a long day of research in the library, he was surprised by the silence that greeted him.

With Heiji and Kaito under one roof for one week now, the default setting was 'loud'. Silence, like now, usually meant bad news. An especially disastrous and elaborate prank, for example.

Kazuha's presence rarely helped to dim the magician's need to humiliate the detective of the west. If anything, having an audience spurred him on. Especially with Kazuha enjoying the free show.

As Shinichi had predicted, Kaito had used his loophole. He didn't touch any of Heiji's _things_. It wasn't necessary, as he was inventive enough to get it done either way.

Usually there was lots of bickering – or 'discussing' as they had the nerve to call it – between the hotheaded detective and Kaito, or Hakuba and Sera were coming over for discussing the next steps, which led to more noise and argum-, no, _discussions_.

“Tadaima...?” It was a testament to how their presence had affected him. He's never felt the need to be so cautious when entering his own home.

The silence really unsettled him.

“Okaeri!”

The magician's cheerful voice came from the living room, the owner coming to greet him with a big grin. Shinichi felt the urge to go and hide.

There was no yelling from Hattori or his girlfriend, which meant they were either drugged with sleeping gas or possibly gagged. Though, would Kaito really go that far for a prank?

The image of Heiji dangling upside-down from a rope with a clown wig and gagged with a clown's nose appeared in his head before he could help himself. He's really been exposed to Kaito's shenanigans for too long.

Dim light was coming from the living room, it wasn't reassuring at all.

“What are you up to?” Shinichi asked warily, wisely choosing to visit the kitchen first. A pot of coffee was brewing, finally a pleasant surprise.

There was also a pizza baking in the oven.

Kaito shrugged innocently. “Nothing special. You're early.”

“Yeah, I was done pretty quickly. Oh, and my FBI contact promised to look into the case.”

“Seriously, tonight I don't want to hear anything about it.” Kaito wagged his finger. “You're going to take a nice and relaxing shower now, and then we're having dinner. And a movie night.”

“You never want to hear anything about it...” Shinichi mumbled to himself and then raised a brow, only then noticing Kaito was dressed in comfortable sweats and warm cuddly pullover. “O...kay? But why?”

“Do we really need a reason? To get our mind off serious things and just relax.”

Still put off by Kaito's mood, the detective shrugged. “Alright I guess. Where are Hattori and Kazuha-chan?”

“Ah, they're taking the 'night off', whatever Tantei-han meant. They're out for a romantic dinner and then they'll stay at a nice little hotel.”

“Why would they-”

“Geeze, they're a young couple in love. Of course they want some privacy every now and then.” Not to mention the bribery Kaito had involved to get them out of the house. Oh the things he did to be alone with the object of his desire.

“Wait, he just left you alone? With the culprit still on the lose?!” Shinichi couldn't believe it. Heiji was a responsible man when people were in danger, and even though he wasn't too fond of the magician, Shinichi's been sure he could leave them alone for a few hours without him running off.

“Calm down, they literally just left. I would've been alone half an hour, tops. Have a little faith in me, will you?”

Heaving a sigh, Shinichi went to grab a mug to get some coffee. He definitely needed it. However, his attempt was thwarted by Kaito.

“Shower first.”

The detective murmured something about being bossed around in his own house as he went to climb the stairs, making Kaito chuckle. The door to the living room was closed now, no way too sneak a peek of what the magician had been doing.

In his bedroom he paused, staring at the bed, where comfortable pajama pants and a warm fluffy sweater were laid out for him. He did recognize the pants as his, but the sweater...

With a slight frown, he held the dark blue fabric up. It had a hood, was a size too big for him and at the front was a print of... a KID doodle.

Shinichi sweat-dropped and threw the sweater on the bed before grabbing the pants and going to take a shower. The warm water relaxed his tense muscles, and if there hadn't been fresh coffee waiting for him he probably would've prolonged this.

As it was, he quickly dried off and pulled on the comfortable pants, venturing back to his bedroom and straight to his wardrobe. Only to find the doors glued shut.

Eyes narrowing, Shinichi stomped towards his parents' bedroom to borrow one of his father's shirts. There was no way he was going to wear... that.

The door wouldn't budge, and after examining it, the detective concluded that it was also glued.

“I'm going to kill him...” He muttered to himself, trying Hattori's door next with the same result.

Bumping his head on the wood, he fought back a groan. It was too chilly to stay topless, and it was definitely not worth the effort to try and climb through a window.

Kaito's grin was wide when Shinichi came down the stairs wearing the KID sweater, not fazed at all by the glare.

“You better put everything back the way it's supposed to be.”

“No worries, I will.”

The detective's mood lifted when he was handed a big mug of steaming coffee. “Why were you so insistent I wear this?”

“Well, a movie night calls for comfy clothes, first of all. Secondly, it's cold, and the sweater keeps you warm. And as we already established, the color brings out your gorgeous eyes.”

Shinichi froze with the cup halfway to his mouth. He was torn between blushing and frowning. In the end he did both. “So you had it custom-made because of that?”

“Nah, they sell them online.” He tugged slightly on the baggy sleeve. “This one is actually mine. You look adorable in my clothes, by the way.”

Retrieving his arm, the detective cleared his throat to distract himself. “Is the pizza done? I'm starving.”

Not really, he mused, but with a full mouth Kaito couldn't say things like these.

“All set and ready, waiting for us in our very own home theater.”

“... Home theater.”

The grin was wide as he simply put an arm around Shinichi's shoulders to guide him to the living room. The door opened seemingly by itself when they approached, and in the dim light Shinichi failed to see the mechanism.

He _did_ see what Kaito did to the room though.

The fireplace was lit, the main source of light. The detective couldn't remember the sofa being _that_ big, but it was hard to tell anyways with the numerous fluffy blankets and pillows strewn across, arranged to an admittedly very comfortable looking nest.

On the coffee table there were a few small candles, the pizza was neatly sliced and ready for eating on a single large platter to share. Various cans of soda stood by one side, and the coffee from earlier had thoughtfully been put in a carafe to keep it hot for a while.

Several bowls of popcorn and whatever snacks the thief had bought were in between.

There was already the menu of a mystery/action movie displayed on the TV, just waiting to be started.

For a moment, Shinichi was speechless. Why on earth did Kaito go through all the trouble for a simple movie night? First the thing with his hoodie and now this. The magician probably lost his mind.

Then again, perhaps he used it to distract himself? He's been hard to read, it could be the threats were hitting him harder than he let on. While Shinichi himself would overthink in these situations, Kaito seemed like the type to divert.

The detective could understand. No need to call him out on it.

“I didn't even know I own so many pillows and blankets.” He humored him as he took a seat on the edge of the nest. “And again, I expect everything back in order by tomorrow.”

“Ssh, the movie is starting.” Kaito winked and handed him a slice of pizza before settling down himself.

Nibbling on his slice, Shinichi tried to relax and concentrate on the movie. The culprit had been suspiciously quiet, it unnerved him. It could mean he gave up. Or it could mean he was planning something bigger and more dangerous. Maybe he was just waiting for them to let their guard down.

He let himself be roped in a discussion about the flimsy plot by Kaito, effectively distracting him from any troublesome thoughts.

By the time the third movie was beginning, Shinichi found himself nodding off. Not even his beloved coffee could keep him any more awake. It was weird, because he usually was too wired to sleep, too scared of the nightmares.

However, here, snuggled into warm blankets with the comforting glow of the fireplace and a mindless movie in the background, he couldn't find it in himself to be scared.

He hated to admit it, but knowing The Kaitou Kid was here was reassuring him in a way it shouldn't be possible.

Shinichi blinked himself out of a light doze for the fourth time now, wondering why he felt so warm and cozy. He was aware of the movie reaching its midway point... but why was the screen tilted?

Finding he did, in fact, not care at the moment, he snuggled into the comfiest pillow he's ever felt and let himself relax completely.

The next time he woke up, there was sunlight streaming through a slit in the drawn curtains. Judging by the angle of the ray of light, it was still way too early to be up. At least in Shinichi's book.

He grabbed the edge of the blanket, which hung over his shoulder, and buried his face in it. Simultaneously he snuggled into the warm firmness under his head to block any light out.

Was it him or did his pillow just move...? Did he hear a chuckle? What was going on?

Forcing his sluggish brain to wake up, he lowered the blanket enough to let his tired eyes roam the room.

Huh, did he fall asleep on the sofa? The TV was off, the fire had died some time during the night. But where was...

Had he been more awake, he would've probably jumped up to the ceiling like a startled cat. As it was, he became aware of a few things one by one.

First, a comfortable weight was slung around his midriff. It was holding him against a firm and warm something.

The something was indeed moving ever so slightly, as if breathing.

And the weird sound he kept faintly hearing seemed to be a beating heart.

Realization hit him then, flushing his entire being and making him stiffen in the relaxed hold.

Did he... did he really fall asleep on Kaito?!

Said magician was watching everything with amused fondness. He's been awake since the first ray of sunlight had emerged, pleased to notice Shinichi hadn't moved at all since Kaito had positioned them a few hours ago.

He had been too giddy to fall asleep for a while, just enjoying having the detective snuggled up to him so comfortably.

He was a warm and cuddly weight against his side. His hand, half covered by the sleeve of the hoodie, curled into the fabric of Kaito's sweatshirt as if to subconsciously reassure himself of his presence.

His face was completely relaxed, he was obviously lulled by the heartbeat he could undoubtedly hear where he placed his head on his chest.

Kaito waited until he was sure he was in a deep sleep before he dared to move his unoccupied arm to turn off the TV and grab one of the strewn blankets to cover them both.

When he settled down, he rewarded himself for the progress by pressing a gentle kiss to the conveniently placed head.

Shinichi had sighed in his slumber and snuggled closer, making Kaito's heart jump with happiness.

Inwardly, he patted his own shoulder. Best. Idea. Ever.

During his stay, he had managed to subtly get the detective to eat more or less regularly without Shinichi realizing it. Hiding his case files – after making sure it wasn't an urgent case of course – had helped a great deal in getting him to relax a little more.

The third evening the files had vanished, Shinichi had given up and refrained from taking any more work home with him. Kaito booked that as another triumph for him.

And this, a simple movie night, was the first step to get him a healthier sleep pattern.

When he watched him wake up in the morning, he was quite sure the detective would freak out. However, he had forgotten how slow Shinichi was right after waking up and without having had coffee.

So he could enjoy the show of a sleepy detective, adorably hiding his face in his chest and making him chuckle at the display.

While he couldn't see his eyes from his position, he knew Shinichi was slowly putting the puzzle together and by the stiffening of his body, he knew he had finally realized what had happened.

“Good morning~” Kaito broke the silence, keeping his voice light and trying not to sound too amused or teasing. His goal was to show Shinichi he was serious, after all.

“...” The detective was having an inner debate of how to react. It was not fair, he thought, to challenge him this early in the morning. “... Morning.”

It was a mere mumble. He wasn't ready to speak clearer at the moment. Why was he _still_ laying there?

He couldn't deny he felt very comfortable. And was still tired. _And_ Kaito didn't seem to mind either, judging how the hand belonging to the arm around him began to trace mindless patterns on the fabric that covered his stomach.

Come on, Shinichi, get your brain in gear, he scolded himself.

Freaking out was probably what the thief expected of him. Getting completely flustered, stammering, yelling at him, rinse and repeat.

Kaito was probably thinking about all of these outcomes, possibly anticipating them to tease him. So maybe it would be best to just do the unexpected.

He forced himself to relax with a yawn and buried his face in the firm chest again, letting his hand fist the fabric of Kaito's sweater again.

Knowing he wouldn't be seen, Kaito allowed his eyebrows to raise in surprise. He certainly hadn't thought Shinichi would take this in stride. Was he _still_ that sleepy, even after realizing their position?

“Comfortable?” He asked quietly, a smile quirking the corners of his mouth upwards.

“Mhm...” Came the hum after a few seconds. “You?”

Ah, so he was more awake than he let on, Kaito concluded by the tone of his voice.

“Very.”

Shinichi bit the inside of his cheek, eyes only half-open. He couldn't imagine having a dead-weight laying half on top of oneself be comfortable in any way. Was Kaito trying to get him to give in first?

That smug bastard probably wanted to see how long Shinichi would play along until he'd lose it.

Two could play that game. It took a lot more to get him to get up in the morning.

The detective squirmed when the beam of sunlight moved with the rising of the sun, hitting his eyes more. He shifted lightly upwards to bury his face in the place between Kaito's shoulder and neck, letting out a satisfied sigh at the relief to his eyes.

His hand gripped the shirt anew, this time right at the collar as he got comfortable once more, this time with a leg partly thrown over his improvised snuggle pillow.

Kaito, he noted, did have a really nice scent.

The magician blinked, heart-rate picking up at the display. He was pretty sure Shinichi was trying to tease him back, but didn't he realize how suggestive this was?!

Seriously, had Kaito any less self-control, he'd pin the alluring detective under him in a second and ravish him.

No, Kaito, bad. Even if he was basically offering himself with his behavior, he doesn't really mean it. He doesn't _know_ what it does to you.

He knew he should probably get up before his dirty and traitorous fantasies got the better of him again.

“Uhm.”

“Hm?” Shinichi didn't move from his position, eyes closed as he's been indeed on the verge of dozing off again. “Want to get up?” He inquired, tone turning smug.

A spark of challenge lit up in Kaito's chest. That little... He let his hand pick up the patterns again in its new position at the narrow hip.

“No.”

He waited for Shinichi to relax more again before his fingers began to slowly help ride the sweater up more until they could slip under to continue the patterns on bare skin instead.

Instantly he felt Shinichi stiffen again, the fist by his collar tightening in the fabric as his breath hitched slightly, creating goosebumps on the magician's skin.

“Kaito...”

“Yes?” The magician innocently stilled his hand, but instead of retreating, he rested the palm fully on the tantalizing warm and soft skin of his stomach. “Am I making you uncomfortable?”

Shinichi fought down the urge to... to... to what? For a frightening moment, his first thought had been to get closer, to ask Kaito to touch him more. The skilled hand on his stomach felt like it was burning, and he's had the thought to move his hips.

Which led him to the urge to jump up and react _accordingly_. What was he thinking?

But Kaito's voice was so damned smug now, teasing him _again_ , obviously thinking he had the upper hand again.

“... No.”

The scorching hand resumed the touching, now with light pressure as Kaito boldly felt up the parts of stomach and chest he could reach without twisting his arm too much.

He noticed the shiver going through the detective's body, excited at the breathy sigh that escaped him and warmed his neck.

If Shinichi _was_ seriously against him and his advances, he'd never let the magician do this. Kaito was sure of it. He never would've fallen asleep cuddled up to him, either. He couldn't be misreading the signs _so_ bad.

His long fingers grew bolder when the detective didn't object, reaching a little higher to graze a surprisingly stiff nipple.

That elicited a gasp from the shorter man, though he tried to muffle it by burying his face in Kaito's shoulder.

Confident that Shinichi would stop him if he went too fast or too far, Kaito tilted his body to trap him between the back of the sofa and himself, letting his free hand join the party under the KID sweater.

It was significantly cooler than the other, though it warmed up quickly as it stroked up the side of his chest and down again to his hip, leaving goosebumps in its wake.

The other hand was keeping the attention on the rapidly hardening buds higher up.

Shinichi was completely overwhelmed by the sensation. He should push him away, it should feel uncomfortable, damn it.

Instead, he found himself enjoying the sensations of the magician's talented hands roaming his chest, a delicious heat engulfing his entire being, making his heart threaten to burst through his chest.

All he could do for the time being was to hold on, his grip on Kaito's sweater tightening as his hips moved themselves to lightly bump against the other man's.

Kaito's responding hiss ignited something in Shinichi, urging him to repeat the action and stifle a gasp by biting his bottom lip as pleasure danced through his body.

A hand on his hips stilled his movements with a firm grip. Shinichi felt more than he heard Kaito panting, the heart beating strongly as he ceased all other movement.

“Ka-”

“Shinichi...” He pressed out, trying to regain his breathing. The use of his first name was enough to get the shorter man's attention. “I won't be able to contain myself... if we don't stop.”

The detective blinked, blue gaze finally lifting to meet Kaito's. The magician's pupils were blown wide, cheeks slightly reddened from arousal. Shinichi felt his breath hitch as his brain caught up with the magician's words.

Before his inner eye, a scene where they didn't stop played out, and the thought was surprisingly not scaring him at all.

Would it be so bad? They were both adults, he reasoned. What was that movie Ran made him watch the other day? Friends with benefits?

Even if it was all just a game or a challenge to the thief, Shinichi didn't care at the moment.

It would sate KID's curiosity with him, he'd have his prize or whatever he thought this was, and the detective surely wouldn't mind having at least one time – his first time – with the only one he thought he could like in that way.

It was a win-win situation for everyone. For one single time.

So, in a burst of boldness, he pushed against Kaito to have him lay flat on his back and rolled on top of him. He bit his lip for a moment as he took in the handsome features, from the surprised indigo gaze, over the inviting lips and strong jaw, down to the delicious smelling neck where he could see the pulse-point jumping.

He desperately wanted to press his lips to the man that had haunted his dreams for years now, but this was not the time. A kiss to the lips was way more intimate than any form of sex could ever be.

His lips attached to the hot neck instead, tongue slipping out to leave a wet trail towards the pulse-point, where he bit gently as not to leave a mark. Kaito probably didn't want any marks.

Kaito had to admit he was overwhelmed. He certainly hadn't thought Shinichi would react so... needy. It took him a lot to wait, hands still where they rested on the shorter man's back so he wouldn't roll off, but not restraining him.

The lust-haze could be responsible for his decision, Kaito mused with what little scraps of his brainpower were left. _Calm down_ , he scolded himself, _give him a minute, see if he really wants this_.

It was hard, almost as hard as his cock was becoming under the roll of Shinichi's slim hips.

Through the thin pajama pants he could feel the detective's own arousal, and the hot breath against his neck was driving him crazy.

“K-Kaito...”

The sight alone would be enough for Kaito's next masturbation session. Those gorgeous sapphire eyes were completely hazed with lust, lips swollen and a nice reddish color from where he's been caressing the magician's neck, face flushed down to where his skin vanished under the hoodie. _His_ hoodie.

 _Calm down you moron_ , he tried to think unsexy thoughts, anything to get his mind off the delicious man on top of him.

“Y-Yeah?”

“Touch me...”

Kaito imagined hearing his self-control snapping. How could he hold himself back when this beautiful creature begged for his touch?

The hands were immediately back under the sweater to caress the hot skin while he rolled them both over. Eagerly, he pressed his growing bulge against Shinichi's, enjoying the pleasured gasps he elicited.

Unable to help himself, he latched onto the detective's neck to leave a mark, his hands migrating to the hips and slipping under the waistband of the pants, beginning to knead the firm mounds of flesh. It had Shinichi buck up out of reflex and moan rather wantonly, the sound going straight to Kaito's cock.

Another sound, the sound of a key being turned in a lock, was what broke the spell. Accompanied by Heiji's and Kazuha's voices, it was more effective than any bucket of ice water could ever be.

They parted quickly, Shinichi's face completely red as he busied himself with gathering their used plates and getting them to the kitchen.

Fortunately for him, the hoodie was long enough to camouflage his rapidly receding erection.

Kaito buried his face in a pillow and groaned in frustration. Hattori would pay for his poor timing.

However, the good news was that Shinichi was definitely interested.

**xxx**

A crash broke the silence of the night two days later. Having been awake because of another nightmare, Shinichi was the first to reach the source. Kaito's room.

Not bothering to knock, he rushed inside, followed by Heiji.

They found Kaito sitting on the floor, feet tangled in his blanket and shirt partly ripped. The room itself was a mess, the window broken in.

The culprit was nowhere to be seen.

“What happened?!”

“I just woke up when he attacked me...” Kaito said in a daze, blinking at the crashed window. “I couldn't see his face, but it was definitely a guy.”

Heiji cursed and looked through the window, careful of the shards. “He couldn't have survived a jump from that height...” He squinted in the darkness. “I don't see anyone.”

Shinichi frowned deeply, body already turning to see if he could catch the intruder outside, but Kaito's hand on his wrist stopped him.

“You can't just run after a lunatic in the middle of the night.”

“The whole point of this is to catch said lunatic. This is our chance.”

Hattori shook his head. “It's pitch black out there, he destroyed the surrounding streetlamps...”

“...” Shinichi still had the urge to try and find him. But if even Hattori thought it was useless he probably should listen. Instead, he faced Kaito. “Did you recognize him? Anything? What exactly happened?”

“Uh...” The magician glanced around the crashed room. “He was really quiet when he sneaked in, I didn't hear him at first. I only woke up when he started thrashing the place.” He shrugged uneasily. “And when I tried to fight him off he fled through the window.”

“Do you think he came through the door...?” Heiji frowned.

“No.” It was Shinichi who answered. “This place's security is top grade.”

“But they managed to get into _my_ apartment too, so they could've sneaked in here too. It's also possible he climbed up and picked the lock to the window.”

Shinichi and Kaito exchanged a meaningful look.

“Either way,” the blue-eyed detective said, “he got in. Which means it's not safe for you to sleep alone...”

Heiji straightened. “Hell no. He's not bunking with me. I don't wanna sleep with one eye open 'cause he sleep-pranks or whatever.”

“I don't sleep-prank, excuse you. I'm fully aware of my tricks, thank you very much.” Kaito grinned when he looked at Shinichi. “Seems like we're gonna be roommates for a while, Shin-chan!”

Horrified, the detective stared at him. “What did you just call me?”

“For someone who's been attacked in his sleep you're pretty chill.” Hattori narrowed his eyes in thought. “You're taking this well.”

Kaito shrugged. “I'm not the type to dwell on things like these. What good would it be to freak out?”

“Jus' saying. It's weird.”

“You'd rather want me to cry in fear? Getting off on playing big hero for a damsel in distress?”

“Why you little-”

“Enough you two.” Shinichi stopped them, rubbing at his eyes. “Hattori, you should check on Kazuha, just in case. And you,” he glanced at Kaito, “get in my room. We'll clean this up in the morning.”

“Hrr, so eager to get me into your bed? I like it.”

“Shut it, Kuroba, or I'll give Hakuba a call and you can spend the night in his bed.”

“Oh ewwwww, Shin-chan!”

“Don't call me that!”

Hattori listened to their quiet bickering as he went to see if Kazuha was still sleeping. Something about the guy seemed off to him. He really took this all too well. And what was with the excessive flirting?

He's been keeping an eye on their interactions since they were here, and it was safe to say the magician was trying to get with Kudo.

Alright, Kazuha was the one pointing it out to him, stating it was romantic and cute, but it was getting clearer and clearer, even to him.

He'd have to check in with Nee-chan, get input on her thoughts of this, and maybe get her to do the shovel talk. Or ask the little Nee-chan next door. _That_ would certainly work to scare the magician.

Because honestly, the guy was giving him the creeps and making him paranoid of his own belongings.

Anyways, if Kudo was refusing him and Kuroba wouldn't back off, Heiji would personally make sure he'd stay away from his best friend, no matter the consequences.

In Shinichi's room, Kaito immediately noticed the open case file, pen and laptop scattered on the bed. Obviously the detective hadn't been sleeping despite the late hour.

Shinichi took everything and deposited his things on the desk. “Go ahead, lay down. The desk lamp isn't bright enough to disturb you, is it?”

“... You have to sleep too at some point.”

“I'm almost through with this case, and someone needs to make sure that guy doesn't get you.”

Kaito frowned. “He wouldn't try anything with a detective sleeping next to me.”

“You don't know that for sure.”

“Hm.” The magician noted how Shinichi avoided looking at him. He calmly took a few steps closer. “Are you nervous?”

“Well, someone broke into my house and tried to hurt you. I am a little worried, yes.”

“That's not what I meant, and you know it.”

“No I don't.”

A smirk showed on Kaito's face at Shinichi's behavior. “Then let me enlighten you.” He came even closer, making the shorter man's back hit the wall in his retreat. “It looks like you can't get yesterday morning out of your pretty little head either.”

At the mention of the encounter, Shinichi flushed deeply. He forced himself to glare at Kaito.

“That-”

“Don't worry. While I'd love to continue that with you, I promise I'll behave.” Long fingers gently touched the burning cheek. “Unless you want to, of course.”

“How can you think about this just after a attack on your person?”

“Like I told Tantei-han, I'm not the type to freak out.”

“Look, if this is to distract yourself from the scare, you-”

“It's not.” Kaito sighed. “Though I guess I get why you'd think that. I can wait, Tantei-kun.” He ran a hand through his hair, eyeing the bed.

“I won't try anything. But I want you to get some sleep too. You _did_ sleep better when you were with me, right?”

Shinichi's shoulders hunched up slightly in embarrassment. “I was too exhausted to dream.”

“ _Or_ my theory was right.”

“You're delusional.”

“Denial doesn't suit you, Shin-chan.”

“Seriously, stop calling me that.”

“Only if you lay down with me.”

Heaving a heavy sigh, Shinichi eyed the bed. It was big enough to share, and he trusted Kaito enough to not grope him if he promised. And... he couldn't deny that the thief's presence _was_ making him feel safer.

He ignored Kaito's grin as he went to lay down, but he couldn't ignore the way the other got in his space after turning off the lights.

“You said you wouldn't-”

“I'm not doing anything. Just getting the both of us comfortable.” As if it was the most normal thing in the world, Kaito pulled the detective into his arms until his head rested on the chest again.

Surrounded by the strong arms, Shinichi found himself unable – and perhaps a tiny bit unwilling – to put up much of a fight.

“You're horrible...” He mumbled, muscles relaxing in the comforting hold.

“Horribly awesome. And now, ssshhh...”

Shinichi rolled his eyes, retort dying on his tongue when Kaito had the nerve to start stroking a hand through his hair to lull him to sleep. Was he being _serious_?

Kaito was risking getting a powerful kick, it was a gamble, but it seemed Lady Luck was sticking to his side. For a moment he thought Shinichi would indeed kick him when he shifted. Instead, he hesitantly got more comfortable and settled down.

It took a while, but finally he felt the breaths even out as his Tantei-kun fell into a deep slumber.

It was a triumph. Shinichi got into a bed with him _willingly_ , fell asleep on him – more or less _on purpose_ – and maybe he could get him a step closer to believing that Kaito's intentions were of serious nature.

He had meant it when he said he could wait.

He had been honestly worried when Shinichi had avoided him since the incident, unable to even look at him. However, this, this was how he imagined heaven.

**xxx**

Hakuba had been understandably baffled when he heard about the nightly attack. Even more so when the two detectives told him they haven't given chase. Or how they couldn't find anything useful.

Sera whistled at the more or less thrashed room. “Wow. Did he come in through the window?”

“Probably. Though he only destroyed it when he jumped out.”

“And he only attacked you after he began destroying the room?” Hakuba asked again, eyeing the disarray of clothes and fallen lamp.

Kaito nodded, arms crossed where he leaned against the doorframe and watched the detectives work.

“That's weird. I mean, he must've known you'd wake up when he started.”

Shinichi rubbed his chin. “And he didn't really _destroy_ anything.” He gestured at the chaos. “He only threw the clothes around and the lamp is not broken, as it should've been when pushed over.”

“Just another try to scare me?” Kaito tilted his head. “I mean, he only pulled at my shirt so it ripped a little, he didn't hurt me.”

“So maybe it's really just a lunatic that gets a kick out of scaring you.” Hattori shrugged. “He had the chance to off you and all, but he didn't.”

“Perhaps he _is_ a fan...” Hakuba grimaced. “And last night's goal was to get physical.”

The four detective's looked at Kaito, whose eyes were wide. “You think that's possible?”

“I wouldn't know why else he'd only tug at your shirt when he could've stabbed or choked you, for example.”

“Maybe it really was just to scare me into hiding. So I wouldn't do any shows or anything.”

“Either way, it's too dangerous to do a show. We can't guarantee your protection when you're parading around on stage.”

Kaito frowned. “But then we'll do exactly what he expects us to do. Maybe a show is what we need to draw him out.”

“You'd be painting a target right on your chest.” Shinichi's brows furrowed with concern. “That's not a risk worth taking.”

“I thought we just established that he probably doesn't want to kill me. And he can't exactly jump me when I'm on stage.”

“What if he changes his mind? For all we know he could be a nutcase.” Hattori sighed. “This is a mess.”

“Who're you telling?” Kaito thunked his head against the doorframe. “Seriously, it's been weeks, I wanna do a performance.”

“I know this may be hard for you, but could you stop being a brat for once?” The magician childishly stuck his tongue out at Hakuba.

“Only if you stop being such a stick in the mud.”

Sera tilted her head. “Hey, if you were attacked in here, did you sleep on the couch or something?”

Shinichi's cheeks colored immediately. “I'm going to check in with Hakase. Maybe their cameras caught something useful.” He announced quickly, fleeing the room before his blush became any more obvious.

Hattori followed him, while the rest stayed.

“Nah, Shinichi let me bunk in his room.”

Hakuba's brow raised, gaze suspicious. “Shinichi, huh?”

“He saved me from boredom at your mansion and appreciates my tricks without any of _your_ typical down-talking.” Kaito said smoothly. “We spent a lot of time close together during the week, _of course_ we are on first name base by now.”

He let his eyebrows wiggle suggestively. “Jealous?”

“Obviously your craziness is tainting his judgment.” Hakuba narrowed his eyes. “You're getting quite cozy with him.”

Sera didn't bother hiding her grin. “What, is there something going on between you two?”

“Yeah, Kuroba, is there?” Hakuba's tone was challenging.

“It would be a little inappropriate to think about these things while there's someone threatening me, wouldn't it?”

“As if you ever cared about what's appropriate...”

“Why do you hate me so much, Hakuba-dearest?” Kaito grabbed at his heart theatrically. “I've never done anything to you that warrants your snarky behavior towards me, and yet you're doing your best at an impression of the ice queen.”

Hakuba's eye twitched with an effort to not let himself be baited by the magician.

“Seriously, I'm freezing. If you start singing Let it Go I will perish!”

The female detective laughed. “You two are better than Pay-TV.”

The blond's fists shook with held-back rage as he mentally counted to 100 for the sixth time since arriving there. He blocked the two of them out best he could.

Sera shrugged at the behavior and went to leave the room. “Kuroba-kun, can you teach me that flower trick? I want to surprise someone.”

“Sweet. I want an invitation to the wedding.”

**xxx**

“You should plan a heist.”

Kaito raised a brow at Shinichi's words, keeping his face otherwise nonchalant. “I'd never thought a detective would tell a thief to steal something. What brought that on?”

Shinichi absentmindedly tapped something on his laptop. They had settled at the kitchen table to give Heiji and Kazuha some privacy in the living room. After the last few – rather stressful – days, they were trying to wind down some.

“For one, you haven't had one since the threats started all those weeks ago. It'd be suspicious if KID was affected by the situation.” He pointed out.

“And here I thought you wanted me to be caught.” The magician grinned, leaning closer to his object of desire across the table. “Worried about me? Are my tries at wooing you finally working?”

Cheeks turned rosy, but Shinichi glared at him and shoved him away by the shoulder. “No. But I refuse to believe you'd be stupid enough to let yourself be caught over something like this.”

“So much faith in me...”

“Here.” The detective turned his laptop to show Kaito what he found, getting up to stand next to him. There was a picture of a heavy golden necklace, a star with a large ruby in the center.

“The Ruby Star is gonna be displayed at the Tokyo Community Center during the next week for the Native American Expo.”

Kaito's lips quirked up in a smirk. “My, Tantei-kun, you'd be a fantastic assistant.”

At Shinichi's unimpressed stare, the grin only widened.

“There's a legend about it, too. Around 150 years ago a noble woman was traveling through Texas and got robbed by the Karankawa tribe. They killed her and drenched the necklace in her blood, cursing it in the progress. A week later the tribe went extinct.” The detective shrugged, calling up a few floor plans. “There's plenty of exits you can use.”

“Did I ever tell you that you're absolutely amazing?”

Shinichi frowned, but couldn't help the blush creeping up on his face. “You said you wanted to do a performance, didn't you?”

The magician blinked, touched that Shinichi would try to alleviate his boredom only because he complained to Hakuba those days ago. He gently touched the warm cheek to make the detective keep looking at him. A fond smile was stuck on his face.

“There's a lot I'd like to do right now.”

Hunching up his shoulders, Shinichi stepped back. “Hattori and Kazuha-chan are right next door.” He mumbled. The Osakan couple was watching some romantic movie, though he wasn't sure if they were really paying attention to it anymore.

“We could go upstairs and lock your door.”

“I'd prefer it if you'd concentrate on this.” He tapped the screen.

“You would?”

Shinichi spared him a glare. “Go and do whatever you must for the heist. Shoo.”

“Mh, bossy.”

The detective crossed his arms, raising a brow. “Is this the part where you tell me you have a power kink?”

Kaito was sure he died and was experiencing heaven. He smoothly got up and cornered the unimpressed Shinichi against the fridge. “While I thoroughly enjoy this side of you, I'd rather have you writhing under me, begging for my touch again.”

Shinichi slapped his shoulder, still glaring, though his cheeks burned. “As long as we haven't caught the guy threatening you we won't do anything!”

“Oh? And when this is over?”

“We'll see. But if you don't stop this right now, I'll really tell Hakuba to take over babysitting you.”

“Ouch.” Kaito winced. “That works better than a cold shower.”

* * *

“I'll keep that in mind.” Shinichi countered and ducked away from the fridge to go find himself a book to read while Kaito worked.


End file.
